Analysis of India’s payment system indicators in 2020

COVID-19 has changed the way consumers use payment instruments fundamentally. The might of digital payments came to the fore as it helped protect vulnerable segments through seamless and quick government-to-person (G2P) payments. Digital payments offered convenient and contactless modes of payment as well as collection to customers and businesses respectively. This report analyzes the trends of various payment system indicators through 2020 and identifies the forces behind such trends. It also explores the lives of three Indian women from different socio-economic backgrounds as they go about their financial lives and how they navigated various barriers and opportunities during the pandemic.