NPCI Introduces Separate Settlement Cycles for UPI Transactions

The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has announced new settlement cycles for Unified Payments Interface (UPI), introducing a clear separation between authorised transactions and dispute-related settlements. The move is aimed at ensuring smoother and more timely processing of payments through RTGS.

Currently, UPI runs 10 settlement cycles per day, each covering both authorised and disputed transactions. With transaction volumes growing rapidly, NPCI has now restructured the process as follows:

1. Authorised Transactions Only (Cycles 1–10):

   • These cycles will handle only authorised transactions.

   • No disputes will be processed during these cycles.

   • Cut-over timings and RTGS posting schedules remain unchanged.

2. Dedicated Dispute Settlement Cycles (Cycles 11 & 12):

   • Two additional daily cycles will exclusively process dispute-related settlements.

   • Files for these cycles will carry identifiers DC1 and DC2 (DC = dispute cycle).

3. No Change in Other Rules:

   • Settlement timings, reconciliation reports, and GST reports will continue as before.

Additionally, NPCI has extended the deadline for discontinuing all autopay mandates linked to the old @paytm UPI ID handles by two months, until October 31, 2025.