Payment apps chase ad revenue, but trust is on the line

New Delhi: Every scan, tap, and PIN entry on a UPI screen represents more than a transaction; it’s a moment of absolute trust. In a digital economy overflowing with noise, the payments interface remains the one place untouched by chaos. But that might be changing.

As India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) matures, it is quietly morphing into a potential media ecosystem. From in-app banners and post-transaction offers to merchant integrations, brands are beginning to see the payments screen as the next touchpoint in a consumer’s digital journey. The logic is simple: where there’s verified intent and identity, there’s opportunity for precision marketing.

Over a billion transactions a day happen on UPI, spanning every geography and every socioeconomic tier. Platforms like PhonePe, Paytm, and Google Pay are already experimenting with contextual promotions and cashback-led engagements, bringing the media moment closer to checkout than ever before. Yet, not everyone is convinced this should become the next high-volume ad playground. Some industry voices warn that rushing to monetise a medium so deeply tied to trust could backfire.

As Ali Zaidi, Senior VP, Media at Tonic Worldwide, put it, “The biggest challenge is trust. Payment data is highly sensitive, and the industry cannot treat it like just another retargeting signal.” That tension between innovation and intrusion defines the UPI ad conversation today. 

“UPI as an ad medium is still quite nascent,” said Anisha Iyer, Chief Executive Officer of OMD India. “It’s an extremely personal space; people associate it with safety and trust, not with media. This confluence requires careful navigation, as it presents both a chance for impact and a duty to users. It isn’t a casual scroll environment, and given its sensitive nature, intrusive or flashy ads are unlikely to resonate. What will work are native, relevant and restrained creative experiences,” she added.

Her point goes beyond creative best practices; it’s about rewriting the ethics of attention. Unlike social feeds or streaming platforms, UPI is a space users visit with a singular purpose: to move money. It’s a moment of focus, not distraction. Treating it like another digital billboard risks rupturing the very intimacy that makes it powerful.

“This isn't a scale or inventory game. UPI offers a chance to interpret audience intent more intelligently, refine behavioural cohorts, and deliver contextually relevant brand experiences with precision. For now, the platform is best approached as a space to test and learn, one where brands act with empathy, evaluate outcomes with rigour, and set benchmarks for responsible innovation through restraint and respect,” Iyer added.

Even as marketers debate the ‘how,’ India’s UPI ecosystem is evolving fast. New players like Zoho Pay, Navi, and super.money have joined the field, alongside fintechs introducing next-generation payment experiences. Razorpay and Cashfree Payments are experimenting with agentic payments, intelligent, automated transactions triggered by user intent or context. While PhonePe and Google Pay still dominate in volume, these newer entrants and technologies are reshaping the ecosystem into something more diversified and data-rich.

That diversity brings both potential and risk. Every new layer of intelligence increases the surface area for brand engagement. Every automated prompt or contextual offer can enhance convenience or cross a boundary.

As Delphin Varghese, Co-founder and Chief Revenue Officer, AdCounty Media India, cautioned, “Privacy is not a box to check; it is a contract of trust. The real innovation will be creating contextual relevance that reaches the right consumer without crossing thresholds of acceptable behaviour.”

The paradox is stark: UPI is the most measurable, high-intent medium India has ever built, yet it’s also the one most vulnerable to overreach. Advertising here demands a new vocabulary, one rooted in empathy, timing, and subtlety. It’s less about visibility and more about value; less about grabbing attention and more about earning permission.

The best campaigns will likely be invisible, integrated within post-transaction journeys, reward flows, or contextual nudges that feel useful, not disruptive. The worst ones will be remembered for all the wrong reasons: tone-deaf creatives interrupting the sanctity of a payment moment.

As UPI moves from infrastructure to interaction, the industry has a rare opportunity to define a more mature form of digital engagement, one that balances brand ambition with consumer dignity. The smartest marketers will realise that in this medium, silence speaks louder than scale.

Because on the most intimate screen in India, trust isn’t just an advantage. It’s the currency itself.