South India vs North India: FinTech supremacy up for grabs in India

Cashless life looked like an impossible dream in India until a few years back with cash being the preferred mode of payment in all walks of life. The script, however had a dramatic turn of events with digital being the established mode of payment today.

Flashback 2016 – sudden announcement demonetization ushers in the accelerated pace towards a cashless economy. Technology boom, smartphone penetration & internet expansion have further added to the pace of growth and acceptance of digital transactions.

Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in the country continues to grow at a remarkable pace, clocking growth rate of 7.7% to touch 730 crore in October.

However, the digital transaction volume penetration in the country has seen a patchy growth with southern states taking the lead while north India still has some catching up.

A comparative study done by PhonePe Pulse & BCG analysis brings out the unequal density, a possibly the infamous north-south divide.

Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana lead the charts. Could the booming start-up culture, quicker acceptance and adaptation of technology and even better access to education be the differentiating factor?

Following closely are Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu & Puducherry. With a strong base for traditional exports, have global business requirements paved way for better tech & digital payment penetration?

Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Kerala & North Eastern States are yet to catch pace. Often labeled as staunch believers of traditional systems of trade, could these regions be still weighing the pros & cons of a digitized ecosystem that is the basis of a strong cashless economy?

Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh still have the lowest volume of transactions per adult population per month. The trying climatic differences and tough terrains have posed a challenge to install the required infrastructure to make technology unleash its full potential.

Can India's transition to non-cash payments find a unified level-playing field?