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PhonePe, Pine Labs Boost UPI Soundbox Coverage in Rural Areas After MDR Implementation
M
Moneycontrol•24-09-2026, 19:39
PhonePe, Pine Labs Boost UPI Soundbox Coverage in Rural Areas After MDR Implementation
- •PhonePe plans to deploy over 50 lakh merchant payment acceptance devices and hire more than 20,000 employees in the next 12 months to support merchant onboarding and device deployment.
- •Pine Labs will roll out 10 lakh soundboxes, aiming to strengthen digital payments infrastructure and improve UPI penetration in new markets.
- •The investments follow the implementation of a 0.4 percent Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on UPI payments above Rs 2,000, effective October 15, providing revenue for ecosystem expansion.
- •The new MDR framework allows PhonePe to take a longer-term view on merchant expansion, with NPCI earmarking 5 percent of collected MDR for small-merchant expansion.
- •UPI is India's most popular payment method, accounting for 89 percent of all digital transactions, processing over 24.5 billion transactions monthly.
Key Questions Answered
PhonePe plans to deploy over 50 lakh merchant payment acceptance devices over the next 12 months, with about 50 percent targeted at rural India, while Pine Labs will roll out 10 lakh soundboxes to expand its infrastructure.
NPCI announced a 0.4 percent merchant discount rate (MDR) on UPI payments above Rs 2,000, which becomes effective from October 15.
PhonePe plans to hire more than 20,000 frontline employees over the next year to support merchant onboarding, KYC completion, device deployment, and merchant support.
