Budget 2026: PSUs Mandated to Use TReDS for MSME Payments

• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced in Budget 2026 that Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) must use the Trade Receivables Discounting System (TReDS) platform to pay Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
• TReDS, established in 2014, allows MSMEs to discount bills from large companies via an auction mechanism, ensuring prompt payments at competitive rates.
• The mandatory use of TReDS aims to further reduce payment delays for MSMEs.
• The platform's growing popularity has already led to a reduction in delayed payments to ₹7.34 lakh crore by March 2024, down from ₹10.7 lakh crore in 2022.

Why It Matters: PSUs are now required to use the TReDS platform for MSME payments, aiming to reduce payment delays.