Navratri ecommerce sales, coupled with substantial GST cuts on major consumer goods, triggered an extraordinary surge in digital transactions. Data reveals a near 10-fold increase in electronic payments, reaching Rs 11.31 lakh crore, driven by heightened consumer sentiment and festive discounts. RTGS transactions saw the biggest jump, reflecting increased spending on high-value items like cars.
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed the total value of transactions across electronic payment platforms soared to Rs 11.31 lakh crore on Monday — a near 10-fold surge from Rs 1.18 lakh crore recorded the previous day. The unprecedented momentum continued on Tuesday, with payments totalling Rs 11.19 lakh crore, signalling optimism for the season.
Big bump in RTGS
Demand is seen sustaining through the month-long festive season until Diwali.
GST reforms involved halving the number of tiers and lowering significantly the levies on big-ticket discretionary consumer items such as cars, motorcycles and home appliances.
“The conclusion of Shraddh period and the onset of Navratri, coupled with recent GST reductions and deep ecommerce discounts, have significantly lifted consumer sentiment,” said Anand Kumar Bajaj, founder, managing director and chief executive of PayNearby. “We’re seeing a sharp uptick in spending, particularly on apparel and home appliances, signalling strong festive demand and renewed economic momentum.”
Digital platforms include the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), credit cards, debit cards, national electronic fund transfer (NEFT), immediate payment service (IMPS) and real time gross settlement (RTGS).
Flipkart and Amazon have announced their annual festival sales that last 10 days. On day one of the sale, credit card spending on web commerce platforms rose six-fold to Rs 10,411 crore, while debit card spending tripled to Rs 814 crore, highlighting strong consumer appetite for high-value purchases, RBI data showed. Most buyers use cards for ecommerce purchases as most companies offer discounts and cashback.
“Following the recent GST relief and the positive market sentiment around it, we've seen a noticeable surge in customer engagement and spending. In just the past couple of days, demand has grown by nearly 20%,” said Bikram Yadav, head of credit cards at RBL Bank. “With low inflation, GST relief and upbeat consumer sentiment, we anticipate strong festive spending across categories such as ecommerce, travel and electronics.”
Among all digital channels, the highest spend was via RTGS — an electronic form of fund transfer for high value transactions. It rose to Rs 8.14 lakh crore, from Rs 17,166 crore a day ago. Large items such as cars require bigger booking amounts, and orders for vehicles by dealers and often end-customers are typically routed through RTGS.
Booming drive
Automotive companies are seen as the biggest value beneficiaries of lower GST slabs, with levies shrinking to 18%, from 28%, for a significant volume of cars.
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