Bankpulse
BanksHomeSearchLatestCo-pilotRankingsCrosswalkHistoryWithdrawnDashboardsRBI UniverseMethodologyGlossaryCircularsAskAnswersChangelogReviewsAbout
Home › Crosswalk › Payment & Settlement Systems

Payment & Settlement Systems — RBI Master Directions

Authorisation and oversight of payment systems, UPI, PPIs & cards. We track 259 RBI documents in this family, anchored by 2 consolidated Master Direction(s) / Master Circular(s). Every entry links to its official page on rbi.org.in.

Last rebuilt: 18 Jun 2026, 01:11 IST
Latest tracked circular: 15 Jun 2026
New in ~last 90 days: 3 circulars
Mapped this RBI financial year (FY 2026-27): 1 circular
259
RBI documents in family
2
Master Direction / Circular anchors
1
Mapped this RBI FY (FY 2026-27)

About this family — the DPSS lineage

The Reserve Bank’s Department of Payment and Settlement Systems (DPSS) authorises and oversees India’s payment systems under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 — UPI and the retail payment rails, prepaid payment instruments (PPIs) and wallets, card networks, ATM and POS operations, the tokenisation framework, and settlement-system oversight. Reference numbers beginning DPSS mark documents from this department. The underlying real-time settlement and IT infrastructure is covered under Information Technology & Cyber, and market-side settlement rules under Financial Markets Regulation. This is our plain-English overview; every document below links to its official page on rbi.org.in — we never reproduce RBI text verbatim. under the editorial review of Vikram Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India.

What this family governs

In plain English: this family governs how money moves electronically between people and businesses in India under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 — UPI, IMPS, NEFT and RTGS, debit and credit cards, prepaid instruments and wallets (PPIs), and the payment aggregators and gateways that sit behind online checkouts. These circulars decide who may operate a payment system and the safeguards that protect everyday transactions. How customer complaints about these payments are resolved sits under Consumer Protection, and breaches are penalised through Enforcement.
Two example focus areas (illustrative, drawn from common RBI payment-system themes):
Focus areas are our plain-English summary of typical themes, not a quote from any RBI document; every tracked document below links to its official page on rbi.org.in. under the editorial review of Vikram Jain.
Last reviewed by

How to find the governing Master Direction for a circular

A quick four-step method to trace any Payment & Settlement Systems circular back to its consolidated RBI rulebook.

  1. Read the RBI reference number
    Every RBI circular carries a reference number such as RBI/2023-24/108 with a department token such as DPSS. The letters before the first slash identify the issuing department.
  2. Match the department code to its family
    That department token maps to the Payment & Settlement Systems family on this page. Legacy codes are folded into their modern department, so even older circulars resolve to the right rulebook.
  3. Open the consolidated Master Direction anchor
    In the Master Direction & Master Circular anchors list below, pick the consolidated rulebook for this family — it is the living document the individual circular amends or sits under.
  4. Verify on the official RBI source
    Follow the rbi.org.in link on the anchor or the circular to confirm the current text on the Reserve Bank's own website. BankPulse never reproduces RBI text verbatim.

Master Direction & Master Circular anchors

Latest circulars in this family

The 20 most recent RBI notifications we track in this family (newest first). Each links to its official page on rbi.org.in.

Browse simplified, plain-English rules in this section →

Key dataSee the live numbers behind this family: RBI Penalty Tracker — monetary penalties RBI imposed on regulated entities, updated from official RBI data. Related live data: Credit & Deposit Growth.
Key termsPlain-English definitions of core terms in this family — see the full Indian banking glossary. UPI · KYC / AML · Master Direction

Payment & Settlement Systems — frequently asked questions

What does the RBI Payment & Settlement Systems family cover?
Authorisation and oversight of payment systems, UPI, PPIs & cards. On BankPulse this family groups 259 RBI documents we track, anchored by 2 consolidated Master Directions / Master Circulars, grouped by the RBI issuing-department code DPSS.
Where can I find the official RBI Master Directions for Payment & Settlement Systems?
Every entry on this page links directly to its official notification on rbi.org.in — we never reproduce RBI text verbatim. Start with the Master Direction / Master Circular anchors listed above for the consolidated rulebook, or browse the 259 tracked circulars in this family. Methodology reviewed by Vikram Jain; BankPulse is an independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India.
What is the difference between UPI and IMPS?
Both UPI and IMPS are real-time, 24x7 electronic fund-transfer systems operated by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) and overseen by the Reserve Bank’s Department of Payment and Settlement Systems under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. IMPS (Immediate Payment Service), launched in 2010, moves money instantly between bank accounts using the beneficiary’s account number and IFSC code, or an MMID and mobile number. UPI (Unified Payments Interface), launched in 2016, is built on top of the IMPS rails but adds a layer that lets you link several bank accounts to a single mobile app and pay using a Virtual Payment Address (UPI ID) or a QR code, without sharing account details — and is typically free for person-to-person transfers. In short, UPI is the newer, app-and-VPA-based experience riding on IMPS infrastructure. This is general information, not advice; the governing circulars are linked on this page. Methodology reviewed by Vikram Jain; BankPulse is an independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India.
What is the difference between RTGS and NEFT?
RTGS and NEFT are the Reserve Bank’s two main systems for moving money between bank accounts, both operated by the RBI under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 and overseen by its Department of Payment and Settlement Systems. RTGS (Real Time Gross Settlement) settles each transaction individually and continuously, in real time and on a one-to-one gross basis, and is meant for large-value transfers — the minimum amount is Rs 2 lakh, with no upper limit — making it the route for high-value and time-critical payments. NEFT (National Electronic Funds Transfer) settles transactions in batches at frequent intervals rather than one-by-one, and has no minimum or maximum amount, so it suits everyday transfers of any size. Both systems now operate 24x7x365, and customers are not charged by the RBI for online RTGS or NEFT transfers, though banks may levy their own charges for branch-based requests. In short, RTGS is real-time and gross for large values, while NEFT is batch-based and works for amounts of any size. This is general information, not advice; the governing circulars are linked on this page. Methodology reviewed by Vikram Jain; BankPulse is an independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India.
Download this family as data: crosswalk-payment-settlement-systems.csv — a machine-readable CSV mapping every tracked Payment & Settlement Systems circular (reference + title) to its parent Master Direction family and official rbi.org.in source. See also the crosswalk families JSON and the per-family CSV index.

← Back to the full RBI Master Direction Crosswalk

How this map is built: documents are grouped by the issuing-department code in each RBI reference number. Every entry links to its official page on rbi.org.in — we never reproduce RBI text verbatim. Methodology reviewed by Vikram Jain. Independent platform, not affiliated with the Reserve Bank of India.