New Delhi: In line with the RBI’s Payments Vision 2025, an interoperable payment system for internet banking transactions is set to debut this year, announced RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das during an event in Mumbai. NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited has received the necessary approvals for this initiative, aimed at expediting fund settlement for merchants.
Governor Das highlighted that internet banking serves as a primary channel for various payments, including income tax, insurance premiums, mutual fund payments, and e-commerce transactions. Presently, transactions processed through Payment Aggregators lack interoperability, causing delays in merchant payments and settlement risks. The new system seeks to address these issues, bolstering user confidence in digital payments.
India, boasting nearly 46% of global digital transactions, has witnessed a significant surge in retail digital payments, soaring over 90% from 162 crore transactions in FY 2012-13 to over 14,726 crore transactions by February 2024.
Das also discussed the success of India’s flagship payment system, UPI, which captured close to 80% of digital payments in 2023. Lauded for its user-friendly interface and QR code-based payments, UPI has evolved to offer advanced functionalities like offline payments, witnessing a remarkable growth from 43 crore transactions in 2017 to eleven thousand and 761 crore transactions in 2023.
Since the inception of the “Har Payment Digital” mission in March 2023 until January 31, 2024, 6.65 crore new UPI users have been onboarded, aided by the deployment of over 1.2 crore digital payment touchpoints.
Governor Das stressed that trust in digital payments rests on transparency, ease of use, and security. Awareness programs are underway to empower individuals in navigating the digital payments landscape confidently and securely.
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