Walmart backed fintech giant PhonePe continued to dominate India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) ecosystem in January, processing 9.91 billion transactions during the month. The company accounted for 45.7% of total UPI transaction volume and 48.6% of total transaction value, reinforcing its leadership in the digital payments market.
According to data released by the National Payments Corporation of India, the UPI network processed 21.7 billion transactions worth Rs 28,33,481 crore in January, marginally higher than December’s 21.63 billion transactions, indicating continued strength in India’s digital payments growth trajectory.
Google Pay Holds Second Position, Paytm Third
Google Pay retained its position as the second largest UPI app, recording 7.23 billion transactions, translating into a 33.3% market share by volume and 33.8% by value.
Meanwhile, Paytm ranked third with 1.66 billion transactions, capturing 7.7% share by volume and 6.4% by value. In value terms, Paytm’s UPI transactions stood at Rs 1,81,973 crore for the month.
With the current growth trajectory, PhonePe is expected to cross the 10-billion monthly transaction milestone soon, having steadily grown from 9.6–9.8 billion transactions in the preceding months.
Mid-Tier Players Gain Ground
Among emerging players, Navi recorded 709 million transactions worth Rs 37,956 crore, followed by super.money, which processed 298 million transactions valued at Rs 12,546 crore.
Youth-focused fintech FamPay handled 161 million transactions, moving ahead of CRED in transaction volume. CRED processed 157 million transactions during the month but continued to lead in value terms among mid-sized apps, clocking Rs 58,841 crore, reflecting its focus on high-ticket payments.
Government backed BHIM maintained its momentum with 172 million transactions worth Rs 22,026 crore.
Sequential Trends Show Seasonal Moderation
On a sequential basis, overall UPI transaction volumes saw a marginal uptick compared to December, while some mid-tier apps experienced minor fluctuations in rankings. The January data reflects typical post-festive stabilization after strong December activity, while maintaining a structurally elevated transaction base above the 21-billion mark for consecutive months.
As competition intensifies, ecosystem stickiness, merchant acceptance, and value added financial services are increasingly shaping leadership dynamics in India’s real-time payments landscape.
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