LuLu allows Indians to use RuPay cards in its UAE shops

Bhaskar Raj

DUBAI: Visitors from India can shop in the UAE using the rupee under the UPI (United Payments Interface) option, as hypermarket operator LuLu has facilitated the use of RuPay card at the LuLu stores across the UAE.

Shoppers can now scan the UPI QR code at POS (point of sale) machines to make payments using their UPI-powered apps such as Gpay, PhonePe, and Paytm.

As the Indian rupee is increasingly becoming international, shoppers can use their UPI-enabled apps – using the mobile number they have in India – or the RuPay card to make payments on purchases in the UAE.

The payment is made using the funds in their bank accounts in India.

The UPI is directly connected to the visitors’ bank accounts in India, and payment for a transaction in the UAE gets done instantly. It is like they shop in India.

Indians to benefit

“The UPI payment facility made available in UAE will greatly benefit over 10 million Indians who travel to the UAE every year, upgrading their convenience and boosting the local trade and economy,” said V. Nandakumar, Director of Marketing at LuLu Group.

A Gulf News report said that other retailers and sectors – such as hotels – in the UAE are rushing to introduce the UPI payment option for visitors from India. The 10 million visitors a year does provide the size to make the necessary investments in their payment systems.

According to retailer sources, the processing fees for such rupee transactions in UAE could be lower than the typical charges that payment networks such as Visa or MasterCard currently have.

Gold and jewellery retailers

In the coming weeks, gold and jewellery retailers in the UAE will likely be the first gainers from rupee deals. “With such rupee payments, there will be a saving for UAE jewellery merchants which can be shared with the customers from India using UPI,” said Abdul Salam K.P., Vice-Chairman of Malabar Gold & Diamonds, which will soon put in place rupee payment options at its UAE stores.

“Shoppers in India have got quite comfortable using the UPI, and it will be the same vibes that Indian tourists will derive when shopping in the UAE. The gold trade here expects to see that happen soon.”

The report said, quoting industry sources, that the costs involved will benefit shoppers from India and retailers here. “Suppose the visitor is planning on purchasing Rs500,000 worth of jewellery for his daughter’s wedding. Once he decides on the spend and if that amount is available in his bank account in India, using that amount on jewellery purchases in the UAE is straightforward. Since that amount already is there in his account, he needn’t have to bother about the Indian tax man who would think about his spending in the UAE. The tax man’s only lookout is on the money going into the account.”