Context:
Recently, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) unveiled several new products with an aim to create an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable digital payments ecosystem.
Relevance:
GS III: Indian Economy
Dimensions of the Article:
- New Product Offerings in Digital Payments
- National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)
New Product Offerings in Digital Payments:
- Credit Line via UPI:
- Allows pre-sanctioned credit lines from banks through UPI.
- UPI LITE X:
- Facilitates offline payments.
- UPI Tap & Pay enhances QR Code and NFC technology for digital payments.
- Offers the option to tap NFC-enabled QR codes for payment at merchant locations.
- Hello UPI:
- Introduces Conversational Payments on UPI.
- Enables voice-enabled UPI payments through UPI Apps, telecom calls, and IoT devices in Hindi and English.
- Future plans include availability in various regional languages.
- BillPay Connect:
- Supports Conversational Bill Payments nationwide through a Bharat BillPay-provided nationalized number.
National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI):
- Purpose:
- Acts as an umbrella organization for managing retail payments and settlement systems in India.
- Initiative:
- Established as a joint initiative of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007.
- Legal Status:
- Registered as a “Not for Profit” Company under Section 25 of the Companies Act 1956 (now Section 8 of the Companies Act 2013).
- Promoters:
- Promoted by ten major banks, including the State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Citibank, Bank of Baroda, and HSBC.
- Regulatory Board:
- Headquartered in Mumbai, it is governed by a regulatory board consisting of nominees from the RBI and ten core promoter banks.
-Source: Indian Express
