UPI Autopay Pitched by NPCI CEO After Elon Musk Announces $8 Twitter Blue Service for Verified Accounts

Even as a debate rages about Twitter’s decision to charge users for ‘blue ticks’, the NPCI has pitched its UPI autopay offering to take care of the monthly payments. National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) managing director and chief executive Dilip Asbe replied to a tweet by billionaire Musk, saying UPI’s recurring payments offering already has 7 million users. “No worries, India has UPI AutoPay (7 Mn new approved collection mandates/month) to collect every anytime/month/quarter or yearly as you wish dear Twitter,” Asbe wrote in response to Musk’s tweet, tagging the microblogging site as well.

“To all complainers, please continue complaining, but it will cost $8, (roughly Rs. 660)” Musk said in a tweet on Tuesday.

The NPCI-operated Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has been at the centre of the Indian digital payments story and has taken the electronic payment alternative to newer highs.

Twitter has been giving the ‘blue tick’ to public figures and known figures for many years now. The change of ownership had first led to speculation over a monthly fee of $20 (roughly Rs. 1,650) for the coveted presence, and later confirmed at $8 by Musk himself.

Musk blasted the ‘current lords and peasants system for who has or doesn’t have a blue checkmark’, using an expletive.

“Power to the people! Blue for $8 per month,” he tweeted adding that the price is adjusted by country proportionate to purchasing power parity.

With that price, he said, users will also get priority in replies, mentions, and searches, which he said is essential to defeating spam/scams, as well as the ability to post long video and audio, half as many ads, and paywall bypass for publishers willing to work with the social media company.

He said the monthly payments from users for the blue tick will also give Twitter a revenue stream to reward content creators.