Maldives launches real-time money transfer service to India through Favara-UPI integration

The Maldives Monetary Authority (MMA) has announced the launch of a cross-border payment integration connecting Favara, the Maldives' instant payment system, with India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI), enabling individuals in the Maldives to transfer money to beneficiaries in India in real time.

The service was officially inaugurated by MMA Governor Ahmed Munawar during a ceremony held at the central bank on Thursday. The event was attended by Minister of Foreign Affairs Iruthisham Adam and High Commissioner of India to the Maldives G. Balasubramanian.

The service went live on 30 July 2026, with Bank of Maldives Plc (BML) and Maldives Islamic Bank Plc (MIB) participating in the initial rollout.

Customers of the two banks can now make person-to-person (P2P) transfers to UPI-enabled bank accounts in India using their existing mobile banking applications and internet banking platforms without registering for a separate service or downloading a new application.

Under the service, customers can send money in either Maldivian Rufiyaa (MVR) or United States Dollars (USD), while recipients receive Indian Rupees (INR) instantly in their bank accounts. The MMA said the experience is designed to be similar to making a domestic instant payment.

The integration is the result of an agreement signed on 24 July 2025 between the MMA and NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL), the international arm of India's National Payments Corporation.

According to the MMA, implementation of the service involved collaboration between the MMA, Payment Maldives Pvt Ltd, the Reserve Bank of India, NIPL, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), participating financial institutions and other stakeholders in both countries.

The launch marks the Maldives' first real-time international payment connection established through its national payment infrastructure. It also makes the Maldives one of a small number of countries with live cross-border person-to-person interoperability with UPI. Prior to the Maldives, only Singapore and Nepal had implemented comparable connectivity, although UPI has established 11 international partnerships.

The MMA noted that UPI is one of the world's largest digital payment ecosystems. Operated by NPCI and used through applications including Google Pay, PhonePe and Paytm, the platform processed approximately 241.6 billion transactions worth around USD 3.56 trillion during the 2025–2026 financial year. In June 2026 alone, UPI handled nearly 22.7 billion transactions, averaging approximately 757 million transactions per day.

The service is being introduced in phases. The first phase, now operational, supports person-to-person (P2P) remittances. The second phase, which will introduce QR-based merchant (P2M) payments, is currently in the final stages of discussions between the MMA and NIPL.

At present, the service supports only outbound account-to-account transfers from the Maldives to India. Cash withdrawals are not supported. Testing of the reverse payment corridor, allowing transfers from India to the Maldives, is expected to begin in the coming months.

In accordance with the Maldives' foreign exchange regulations, transfers are permitted only for education expenses, medical treatment for Maldivians holding long-term medical visas, and family maintenance and personal savings.

Each customer may transfer up to INR 24,000, equivalent to approximately USD 250, per month through each participating bank. Banks may also choose to apply lower transaction limits.

The transfer process includes recipient verification before funds are sent. Requests are routed through Favara to UPI, where recipient accounts are screened through fraud and sanctions controls. The verified recipient name is then returned to the sender for confirmation before the transaction proceeds.

Once confirmed, the sender's bank debits the account in MVR or USD, converts the amount into Indian Rupees and routes the payment through Favara to UPI for near-instant credit to the recipient's bank account.

Participating Maldivian banks maintain pre-funded Indian Rupee settlement accounts with correspondent banks in India to facilitate immediate settlement.

Before authorising a transaction, customers are shown the applicable exchange rate, any bank charges and the verified recipient's name.

The MMA said future phases of the collaboration will introduce additional cross-border payment services, including merchant QR payments and other digital payment use cases, with the aim of strengthening economic and financial ties between the Maldives and India.

The authority also thanked the governments of the Maldives and India for their support in implementing the initiative.