India will introduce a 0.4% merchant discount rate on specified person-to-merchant Unified Payments Interface payments above ₹2,000 from Oct. 15, 2026, ending the zero-fee merchant regime adopted in 2020. The charge is capped at ₹300 on payments of ₹75,000 and above and will apply to rupee deposits made through UPI within cryptocurrency exchange apps, where the platform is treated as the receiving merchant. Customers cannot be charged directly under the framework, meaning exchanges including CoinDCX, CoinSwitch, Mudrex and ZebPay are expected to credit the full deposit amount while absorbing the payment cost if they retain current zero-fee deposit policies. Person-to-person UPI transfers, including payment-rail transfers in peer-to-peer crypto trades, remain free. The change adds to operating costs for FIU-registered Virtual Digital Asset Service Providers, which already operate under India's 30% tax on Virtual Digital Asset gains and 1% Tax Deducted at Source on qualifying transfers. The Finance Ministry and NPCI have not issued a crypto-specific circular, and exchanges are not included in concessional merchant categories.