Airtel Payments Bank on Sunday said it has become the first payments bank in India to integrate the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) on its digital platform.

This will add to customer choice and convenience for making secure digital payments to online/offline merchants and making instant money transfers to any bank account in India, it said.

UPI-enabled payments and money transfers will add another dimension to Airtel Payments Bank, which has a vast network reach, particularly in deep rural pockets, and a wide merchant ecosystem that accepts digital payments from its customers.

"This would allow all our 20 million bank customers to create their personalised UPI handles on the Airtel app, and enable them to make digital payments in both the offline and the online space. Our bank customers would also be able to link their bank accounts on BHIM app and make UPI payments," Shashi Arora, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Airtel Payments Bank, said.

For UPI-based payments and transfers, customers are not required to furnish their bank details to enable transactions and can create easy to remember IDs, ensuring optimal data security, the company said.

Customers can also use MyAirtel app (Bank section) to scan any UPI QR code for making merchant payments. Online and offline merchants can leverage Airtel Payments Bank as a payment mode to accept payments seamlessly from their customers.

UPI is now accepted across categories of merchants including billers, insurance , travel and retail both online and offline, the company said.

Customers can also link their Airtel Payments Bank savings accounts to any of their UPI handles on popular apps such as BHIM or UPI apps of other banks. This can be done by selecting Airtel Payments Bank from the link or change account section and select airtel payments bank from the listpost which customer details will be linked to the UPI handle automatically, the company added.