Is Google Pay Not Authorised by RBI? No, the Viral Claim Is Fake

Google Pay is listed as a third-party app on the official website of NPCI.

The claim suggests issues faced while transferring money through Google Pay cannot be claimed as it is not listed as an authorised payment system.

(Photo: Altered by The Quint)

A picture, which warns users against using Google Pay, claiming that it is not a recognised 'payment system operator' by the Reserve Bank of India, is going viral on the internet.

It goes on to state that an individual should exercise caution while using the application as any issues that may arise while using the same cannot be claimed because it is outside the purview of the RBI.

However, we found that the claim is misleading. We found Google Pay under the third-party apps approved by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).

Both Google and NPCI have issued statements in the past to clarify that Google Pay operates within the law, and since Unified Payments Interface (UPI) apps are recognised as third-party apps, therefore it does not require to be a 'payment system operator'.

CLAIM

The claim suggests that Google Pay is not on the list of the "authorised payment system", and hence issues while doing transactions through the application cannot be claimed.

An archive of the post can be seen here. 

(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)

Several social media users are widely sharing this post.

The post has gone extremely viral.

(Source: Facebook/Screenshot)

We also received multiple queries on our WhatsApp tipline regarding the same picture. We found that the same post had also gone viral in 2020.

Archives of similar claims can be found here, here, and here.

WHAT WE FOUND

We searched the NPCI's official website and found that Google Pay is listed in the eighth position under the third-party apps under the UPI section. 

Google Pay is listed as a third party app. 

(Source: NPCI website/Screenshot)

We conducted a keyword search on Google and came across an article published on India Today on 20 June 2020. The article was titled "Google Pay not a payment system operator: RBI to HC". According to the report, RBI told the Delhi High Court that Google Pay is not a payment system operator as it does not operate any payment system. However, an updated version of the article said that RBI's statement to the Delhi HC led to confusion and included a clarification from Google.

Google also shared the statement in a tweet thread on 24 June 2020. 

The company's statement highlighted that the mobile application "operates completely within the law" and added that the transactions are protected by redressal processes laid out by RBI/NPCI.

We also found a press statement from NPCI from June 2020 that said Google Pay is a classified Third Party App Provider (TPAP) which operates under the body's UPI framework.

NPCI had released a media statement in 2020 to clarify the confusion surrounding Gpay. 

(Source: NPCI document/Screenshot)

The state further clarified that the transactions made by all authorised TPAPs are protected by the redressal processes laid out by the NPCI and RBI.

Clearly, a fake photograph is being circulated to claim that transactions through Google Pay are authorised by the RBI and that people should exercise caution while using the mobile application.

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