Ambuj Sinha

https://lnkd.in/dbtKmxwC Credit Line on UPI(CLoU) with Interchange Fee of 1.2% on Interest Free Credit is likely to set off a revolution with small ticket size loan market in the form of BNPL. Below are some of the reasons why CLOU has potential to takeoff now - 1. Issuer bank will now earn Interchange fee of 1.2% for Interest free credit period upto 30/40 days. 2. Payer PSP bank and UPI app/TPAP will earn fee of ~5 bps per transaction from the issuer. 3. Acquiring bank can charge MDR for accepting CLOU from large merchants and even small merchants only where ticket size is above 2k. This will ensure that all UPI acquirer will not decline CLOU transactions. 4. Small merchants can continue to avail CLOU acceptance services from acquirers without any charges upto 2k txn value. 5. For customers -preapproved Credit line customers, they can link their Credit Line to any of their preferred TPAP/PSP app. and make payment from the Credit Line conveniently, hassle free without any additional charges. 6. Lastly, for Issuers and acquirers the Infra cost of Issuing and accepting CLOU get reduced drastically and most importantly the cost of acquiring small ticket size loan customer and collection via UPI mandate becomes viable riding on CLOU network powered by NPCI. Overall a win win situation for all parties involved in the CLOU transaction. #NPCI Nalin Bansal Dilip Asbe Ramki Gaddipati ePayLater sivaram kowta Ramanathan RV Ajay Pandey Aurko Bhattacharya Prakash Sikaria Prashanth Ranganathan Sayali Karanjkar

42

5 Comments

As NPCI India launched UPI circle, banks will now need to introduce the functionality of payments delegation for their UPI customers. Tushar Chitra provided a quick primer in a Finextra article about what UPI Circle is and how it has the potential to further boost digital payments in India. Give it a read!

3

#RBL Launches PRAVAAH, RBI Retail Direct Mobile Application and FinTech Repository 👇 Shri Shaktikanta Das, Governor, Reserve Bank of India today launched three major initiatives of the Reserve Bank of India, namely the PRAVAAH portal, the Retail Direct Mobile App and a FinTech Repository in the presence of other delegates. RBI has introduced these 3 innovative tools to streamline regulatory processes, make investments easier, and better understand the FinTech sector. 1️⃣ PRAVAAH Portal: The #PRAVAAH portal (Platform for Regulatory Application, VAlidation, and AutHorisation) allows individuals and businesses to apply online for various regulatory approvals. Key features include: - Online application submission - Status tracking and monitoring - Responding to RBI queries - Receiving decisions promptly Currently, 60 application forms are available, with more to be added as needed. Access the portal at - 🔗 https://pravaah.rbi.org.in 2️⃣ Retail Direct Mobile App: Launched in November 2021, the #RetailDirect portal helps retail investors buy and sell government securities (G-Secs). Now, with the new mobile app, investors can easily transact in G-Secs on their smartphones. Download the app from the Play Store for Android or the App Store for iOS. 3️⃣ FinTech Repository: The FinTech Repository gathers essential information about the Indian FinTech sector, aiding in policy development and industry understanding. It also includes the EmTech Repository for banks and NBFCs to track emerging technologies like AI, ML, and blockchain. Visit below links to explore these resources. 🔗 https://lnkd.in/dHseTpBT 🔗 https://lnkd.in/dY89jY-m These initiatives by RBI aim to enhance efficiency, provide ease of access, and foster innovation in the financial sector. Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) National Payments Corporation Of India (NPCI) Reserve Bank of India (RBI) #pareshmashete Follow Paresh

19

1 Comment

📢 𝗨𝗣𝗜 𝗣𝗮𝘆𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗦𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗥𝗜𝘀 🎉 ICICI Bank has enabled UPI payments in India for #NRI customers using their international mobile numbers. 💸 NRIs can now pay utility bills, conduct merchant and e-commerce transactions hassle-free with their international mobile number & #iMobile Pay app. 📱 ICICI's NRE/NRO account holders need not switch to an Indian number anymore for using #UPI services. 🌏 This feature is available to ICICI customers across 10 countries - USA, UK, UAE, Canada, Singapore, Australia, Hong Kong, Oman, Qatar & Saudi Arabia. source: https://lnkd.in/g_3pv3Yp (views expressed are my own)

26

The new RBI regulations requiring all credit card bill payments to be processed through the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) have significant implications for fintech companies like CRED, PhonePe, and Paytm. 1. Revenue Impact: Fintech companies may see a decline in transaction volumes as they can no longer process credit card bill payments for major banks unless they become BBPS-compliant.This could lead to reduced revenue from service fees and commissions associated with these transactions. 2. Customer Retention: Users accustomed to paying their credit card bills through these platforms might shift to using direct bank channels, potentially leading to a loss of customers. Fintechs will need to find new ways to retain these users and maintain engagement on their platforms. 3. Integration Costs: To continue offering credit card payment services, fintech companies will need to integrate with BBPS. This process could involve significant technical and operational adjustments, increasing their operational costs. 4. Market Adaptation: Fintech companies may need to innovate and diversify their service offerings to adapt to the regulatory changes. This could include expanding into other areas of financial services, enhancing rewards programs, or developing new features that do not rely on credit payments. 5. Regulatory Compliance: Fintechs will need to ensure compliance with the new regulatory environment, which could involve ongoing investments in technology and legal frameworks to align with RBI guidelines. Overall, while the transition presents challenges, it also offers fintech companies an opportunity to innovate and potentially develop new services that align with the evolving digital payments landscape in India. https://lnkd.in/d42xfggd

7

1 Comment

The new RBI regulations requiring all credit card bill payments to be processed through the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) have significant implications for fintech companies like CRED, PhonePe, and Paytm. 1. Revenue Impact: Fintech companies may see a decline in transaction volumes as they can no longer process credit card bill payments for major banks unless they become BBPS-compliant.This could lead to reduced revenue from service fees and commissions associated with these transactions. 2. Customer Retention: Users accustomed to paying their credit card bills through these platforms might shift to using direct bank channels, potentially leading to a loss of customers. Fintechs will need to find new ways to retain these users and maintain engagement on their platforms. 3. Integration Costs: To continue offering credit card payment services, fintech companies will need to integrate with BBPS. This process could involve significant technical and operational adjustments, increasing their operational costs. 4. Market Adaptation: Fintech companies may need to innovate and diversify their service offerings to adapt to the regulatory changes. This could include expanding into other areas of financial services, enhancing rewards programs, or developing new features that do not rely on credit payments. 5. Regulatory Compliance: Fintechs will need to ensure compliance with the new regulatory environment, which could involve ongoing investments in technology and legal frameworks to align with RBI guidelines. Overall, while the transition presents challenges, it also offers fintech companies an opportunity to innovate and potentially develop new services that align with the evolving digital payments landscape in India. https://lnkd.in/d42xfggd

4

National Payments Corporation Of India (NPCI) Guidelines on Merchant Acquisition for BHIM Aadhaar Pay Here's a breakdown of the key points: - Banks Responsible for BHIM Aadhaar Pay Merchants - Banks are fully responsible for onboarding and managing merchants for BHIM Aadhaar Pay (digital payments using Aadhaar biometrics). - This includes direct onboarding or via approved aggregators/partners. Key Bank Requirements - Defined policies for merchant acquisition. - Agreements with all involved parties (merchant, aggregator, etc). - Thorough merchant underwriting processes. - Ongoing merchant portfolio monitoring and risk mitigation. - Merchant training on BHIM Aadhaar Pay. - Oversight and governance for third-party agents involved. Additional Rules - Assigning the correct Merchant Category Code (MCC) based on the nature of the business. Specific MCCs related to cash services are not allowed for BHIM Aadhaar Pay. - Cash withdrawal transactions are strictly prohibited on BHIM Aadhaar Pay. - Banks must ensure compliance with Aadhaar regulations and NPCI guidelines. A copy of the full NPCI Guidelines with Annexure A is attached to this post for reference. #paymenttech #innovation #npci #fintech #banking

19

1 Comment

Heartening to see Leading Lender having its Top Executives encourage taking a seat on boards of Industry parallel firms. This really helps develop an ecosystem where Country's finest executives's leverage helps in evolution and vice versa it just Strengthens one of the strongest financial services Firm. #startup #ecosystem #kotak #leadership

2

Product Management in BFSI - Post #04 𝐍𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐑𝐞𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬: 𝐓𝐨𝐩 5 𝐑𝐁𝐈 𝐂𝐢𝐫𝐜𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭 𝐌𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐁𝐅𝐒𝐈 𝐌𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐊𝐧𝐨𝐰 In continuation of series on Product management In BFSI, it should be noted that regulatory compliance is non-negotiable for product success in this sector. Here are five important RBI circulars every product manager needs to understand: 1. Master Circular on Loans and Advances: Governs loan issuance, focusing on risk and transparency. Crucial for PMs working on lending products. 2. Know Your Customer (KYC) Direction: Establishes guidelines for verifying customer identity. PMs in BFSI must ensure secure, compliant onboarding processes. 3. Master Circular on NBFCs & HFC: Defines regulatory norms for Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), and Housing Finance Company from asset classification to risk management. 4. Master Circular on Customer Service in Banks: Provides standards for transparency, fairness, and grievance handling, shaping customer-focused product designs. 5. Master Circular on Prudential Norms on Income Recognition, Asset Classification, and Provisioning (IRAC): Guides classification of non-performing assets (NPAs), vital for managing loan portfolios effectively. These are just some of the key circulars. There are various other circulars and directions issued by the RBI that product managers in BFSI must refer to, depending on the product, business, and type of entity. For example, product manager working in credit card team must be well versed with RBI's 'Master direction on credit card and debit card issuance and operations' I will cover other relevant guidelines and circulars in product specific posts. By mastering these guidelines, product managers can ensure products and solutions which they build, are compliant with regulatory norms. #ProductManagement #BFSI #RBI #Regulations #Compliance #FinTech #Banking #FinancialServices #NBFC

13

National Payments Corporation Of India (NPCI) @GFF2024 I was little surprised and concerned in GFF2024 by seeing the launches which you have done was contradictory to Agenda or purposes of NPCI/UPI. Purpose of NPCI is to introduce and uplifting of digital payment solutions like fastag, ppi, UPI NCMC and much more. if you recall the product which was launched like cash@UPI has no sense. UPI was introduced to avoid cash transaction and bring more transparency in retail business. but introducing cash withdrawal or deposit using UPI will that make any sense. similarly, creditline on UPI.

13

1 Comment

UPI Apps Market share is a testimony of what happens when a technology disrupts As my team put together this- we were discussing on how this will continue to bring value to World and make 🇮🇳 Indians more proud

36

Soon, you will be able to verify if the lending app you are using is actually affiliated to a RBI regulated entity or not. Yesterday ,RBI announced the creation a public repository of Digital Lending Apps deployed by the lenders (REs) which will be available on RBI’s website. RBI has been taking regular reports of digital lending by all its REs, for the last couple of years now. This repository will be based on data reported in these filings and will get updated as and when the REs report the details. Its a welcome move to increase transparency, and aware customers would definitely be able to check the genuineness of the app. Hopefully, it would help in identification of the bad actors in the industry. Third parties, like Google Play store could work off this repository instead of doing their own independent paperwork increasing the compliance burden on the RE. #digitallending #fintech #regulations

26

9 Comments

LIN 333 Faster/Instant payments around the world: the highlights India: India is experiencing rapid growth in faster payments with its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) platform, which launched its pilot in 2016. Three years after launch, UPI began processing more than 1 billion transactions a month,2 and has maintained exceptional growth in volume in the first half of 2020 with a 69 percent increase compared to the same period last year. China: China’s faster payments growth was also notable with a 20 percent increase in volume and a 50 percent increase in value since 2018. Its two new payments schemes, both of which are closed loop, consist of mobile payments through digital wallets and Quick Response (QR) codes. These platforms are run by two big tech firms, Alibaba and Tencent, and essentially remove the bank from the payment transaction. Singapore: Faster payments in Singapore have seen strong growth with its Fast and Secure Transfers (FAST) system, which launched in 2014. This system allows customers of participating financial institutions to complete near real-time electronic funds transfers 24/7. In 2019, FAST processed 93 million transactions, a 55 percent increase in volume over 2018, their highest annual increase since launch. Europe: In response to faster payments demand in Europe, TARGET Instant Payment Settlement (TIPS) was launched by the European Central Bank (ECB) in November 2018. This pan-European system based on the SEPA Instant Credit Transfer (SCT Inst) scheme enables payment service providers to offer instant fund transfers 365x7x24 and settle the payments in central bank money. At launch, this system settled instant payments only in euro, but with the goal of settling other currencies in the future, such as the Swedish Krona The U.K. The U.K.’s Faster Payments service network is now 11 years old. Faster Payments broke the record for highest amount of payments processed in a single year in 2019, with 2.4 billion payments, a bump from the 2 billion in 2018. The second quarter of this year saw continued growth with 650 million payments processed by Faster Payments, a 10 percent increase from last year Australia: Australia launched its New Payments Platform (NPP) faster payments system in February 2018. This platform allows users to make real-time payments 24 hours a day, seven days a week, NPP has processed over 384 million payments, totaling $344 billion (AUD),with significant acceleration in January 2020 when NPP processed a daily average of more than 1.1 million payments, worth $1 billion. United States: Faster payments are steadily gaining momentum in the United States as the industry realizes there is a desire for the speed and convenience that these payments provide. And with the introduction of the FedNowSM Service, adoption of instant payments can be expected to expand even further. Source : frbservices

35

Amendment to Framework for Facilitating Small Value Digital Payments in Offline Mode RBI/2024-25/93 CO.DPSS.POLC.No.S908/02-14-003/2024-25 December 04, 2024 The Chairman / Managing Director / Chief Executive Officer Authorised Payment System Operators and Participants (Banks and Non-banks) Madam / Dear Sir, Amendment to Framework for Facilitating Small Value Digital Payments in Offline Mode This has reference to the RBI circular CO.DPSS.POLC.No.S1264/02-14-003/2021-2022 dated January 03, 2022 (updated as on August 24, 2023) which enabled small value digital payments in offline mode (Offline Framework). The framework, inter-alia, prescribes an upper limit of ₹500 for offline digital payment transaction, and a total limit of ₹2,000 for a payment instrument at any point in time. 2. A reference is also invited to the Statement on Developmental and Regulatory Policies dated October 09, 2024, wherein it was announced that the stated limits shall be enhanced for UPI Lite. Accordingly, the Offline framework has been updated and the enhanced limits for UPI Lite shall be ₹1,000 per transaction, with ₹5,000 being the total limit at any point in time. 3. This circular is issued under Section 18 read with Section 10 (2) of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (Act 51 of 2007), and shall come into effect immediately.

5

Hi All Need to raise a point here with the RBI for clarification .Recently it's seen that many customers have raised chargeback complaints via the online portal RBI BO for transactions which are more than 360 days in case of MICRO ATM(AEPS) withdrawal they have done. Now the BO rule says they can raise till one year but the condition is after getting the revert from RE or if they did not get revert within 30 days from the date of complaint . They can't raise it on BO directly without raising it with RE first . But these complaints are raised by the BO to the Acquirer banks and the Acquirer banks forwards it saying they need customer declaration to reject the same or else it will be debited to the Corporate BC. How fair is this the compliance team just does a postman job to forward and put pressure as they are anyway at the upper hand to debit the amount , do they even understand how much days it will take to earn that amount the poor BC succumbs to the pressure and pays from his pocket denting his revenue which is already the lowest . There are clear guidelines from NPCI saying first 90 days for raising chargeback and then 60 days post 90 for good faith . So what this guideline means if this is what the BO RBI team escalates . This is a common issue to all the FI BC's can we have a clear guideline or the present one is misinterpreted due clarity issues and the pressure is on . Would like the authorities of NPCI /RBI followed with other fintech leaders to explain and guide on such practices .Specially from the Acquirer banks who just don't want to understand the guidelines . These impact the revenue and there is a leakage in the system which over time can erode revenues with the very low margins the Corporate BC's earn in this business. National Payments Corporation Of India (NPCI) Reserve Bank of India (RBI)

8

In the recent monetary policy announcement, the Reserve Bank of India announced that UPI Lite will now be integrated with the e-mandate framework. This move holds tremendous potential for India's digital payment ecosystem. The integration promises to enhance the efficiency and convenience of recurring payments, making transactions smoother for both consumers and businesses. Kudos to the RBI for driving innovation in the financial sector and setting the stage for a more seamless and inclusive digital economy. Looking forward to seeing the positive impact of this initiative! Read more here: http://bit.ly/4aUTamV #Fintech #DigitalPayments #UPILite #Innovation

58

An interesting text came up in my alumini group came up today. Looks like IDFC FIRST Bank is hiring for upcoming/aspiring Product Managers with 1+ Years of experience for their Tech & Digital capability. Would encourage all the upcoming and aspiring Product folks to use this opportunity and apply on the link below https://lnkd.in/g5aKQT5K P.S - Just an informational post, I don’t know the Hiring Manager or the recuriter. But its a legitimate opening 🙂 #Jobs #ProductManagement

14

1 Comment

This has been in works from by PSBs from 2018, first was PSB Loans online , OCEN, added to that Jansamarth for agri loans, PSB Alliance for Supplychain finance and last few months ULI - Unified Lending Interface for agri, MSME and consumer loans . do we need more ? We see that technology is ahead but credit models are outdated they rely on yearly balance sheet data not cash flow what was envisioned by OCEN , outdated credit models are blockers for MSME credit flow ! banks have not changed their loan products , credit , underwriting policies 5-6 levels of approval hierarchies for decades , they ask for collateral for CGTMSE schemes and personal guarantees to tie up promoter and founders of startup’s and MSMEs. What we need is financial profiling of MSMEs , a digital financial identity on blockchain for MSMEs , with standardised document and data checklist, work flows neutralised business rules and credit rules so that MSME are loan ready ! Building for banks by banks has been problem , we have build technology and credit / loan models for the borrowers , to meet 60 mln MSMEs and 100-200 mln more unregistered gainfully self employed people and households !

8

1 Comment

RBI has been miles ahead of most of the Reserve Banks of even the developed economy as far as adoption of technology is concerned. RBI has simplified and significantly reduce the operation costs of clearing with the launch of Real Time Settlement (RTGS) in 2004. Followed by instant transfer of funds through IMPS in 2005. Now RBI has initiated a major improvement with the facility of being able to identifying the beneficiaries name before making the electronic transfer, thereby eliminating a major concern of having inputed the correct beneficiary account number. 👍 https://lnkd.in/gJPXKN3i Reserve Bank of India (RBI), Indian Ministry of Finance, #rtgs #imps #funds transfer

4