innovationinbanking

I was thinking aloud, how to kill multiple birds with a single stone. What are the multiple birds? 01) Increase the average spending on Credit Cards. 02) Increase the reward points 03) Introduce a new payment method for the Infrastructure Bonds. 04) Increase the catchment area for Infrastructure Bonds. 05) Increase the average spending on Debit Cards. 06) Increase the catchment area for Internet Banking. And, What is the single stone? A) ePayments. Ok, so you do not believe it? Well read on. At present the only option to apply to Infrastructure Bonds, is via the old fashioned way i.e Paper Instruments via Cheque Draft. Few Brokerage houses allow the Investor to apply through their website, with an integrated  Payment Gateway. However, payment via Credit Card/Debit Card is still in their basket of options. This is where my idea comes into play. A basic road-map is as under : 01) The Broker integrates the Payment Gateway to accept Credit/Debit Cards ...

An untapped area of ePayments is the Government’s scholarship arena. All State Governments extend various types of student scholarships. The mode of disbursement is via paper based cheques. Few Governments have started exploring the ePayments mode for disbursements of scholarships. Andhra Pradesh has moved the complete Scholarship cycle into electronic mode i.e Application till disbursement of scholarship. The website has an interesting name too epass @ http://epasswebsite.cgg.gov.in/ The website has been developed by Centre for Good Governance. As a safe ePayments practitioner, what is fascinating is the integration of ePayments mode for the scholarship disbursement mode. AP government has tied up with State Bank of India for the same. The solution being utilised is the SBI Prepaid Card - EZpay More on this can be read @ https://prepaid.onlinesbi.com/ezpay.html Students have the option of receiving the scholarship amount to their Banks accounts via the NEFT m...

A new entrant in the ePayments arena,  National Common Mobility Card (NCMC) was formally launched by  union minister for urban development, Kamal Nath on 06/12/2011,  during Urban Mobility India 2011 conference. The NCMC has been branded as ''More'' signifying the national bird ''Peacock''. Further in English, “more”, means  that the user get more and more by using this card. What is the basic idea of NCMC ? In simple terms, it is another mode of ePayments i.e electronic wallet. NCMC has been promoted by Urban Development Ministry headed by Shri Kamal Nath. The idea of NCMC is to enable the user with a single transport system that provides seamless, efficient and hassle free travel experience across the length and breadth of the country. The ministry of urban development also plans of implementing a single ticketing system for all modes of public transport in India but also for parking and toll. The implementation of 'More...

In simple terms, an eCheque is an electronic funds transfer that withdraws money directly from your bank account. It's just like writing a cheque, only it is done electronically Worldwide it is familar to Paypal consumers. As per Paypal website, QUOTE eCheques are payments from buyers who have attached their bank details to their PayPal account, but do not have a valid backup funding source such as a credit or debit card. It may also be that their backup card has expired. So to ensure that a secure payment can still made, an eCheque is generated. Sending an eCheque is a bit like sending someone a paper cheque, only it is done electronically. And because it is processed by PayPal, the payment is also protected and the sender and recipient do not need to share their financial details. UNQUOTE In Indian context, ICICI Bank, way back in 2002 had introduced this concept. This was built around RBI EFT system. However, as EFT has since been discontinued, ICICI’s Ba...

In the arena of innovative ePayment Products, Axis Bank had launched an Instant Money Transfer product in September 2010. It is more than 1 year of its launch, and the transctions via IMT seem to be on the increase. These new cutting-edge ePayment options, aid in increasing the reach of the Banking network to the unbanked and are a part of the Financial Inclusion drive. RBI is clear that all path-breaking payment products have to designed around the Banking channel only. At least one leg of the transaction has to be via the Bank Channel. Keeping this in view, IMT is designed to benefit the Unbanked, but via the Banking channel. In short, in IMT, the Sender has to have a bank account, whereas the Receiver need not have a bank account. More details of the Axis Bank’s IMT service can be accessed @ Axis Bank-IMT-FAQ's The IMT funds receiver, if he/she does not have an account with Axis Bank, has to do an one time registration of his/her mobile number with Axis Bank. ...

UCO Bank - India - Pre-funded Cheques It was a pleasant surprise, to know more about a new innovative bank product. This product was launched by UCO Bank way back in 2008. The Pre-funded cheques seems to be unique to UCO Bank, and so far, not copied by other Indian Banks. The salient features of the Product are : 1.Background The Pre-funded cheques have an upper limit inscribed on them. The same can be used as Gift Cheques, Travlellers Cheques or Normal Cheques. 2. Eligibility: This is available  customers maintaining individual SB/CA account with the Bank, i.e no Joint accounts, or other business accounts holders cannot avail this facility. 3. Service Charges Service charges shall be levied upfront @ Rs.100/ per cheque book of 10 leaves of Rs.10000/- denomination and @Rs.50/- per cheque book of 10 leaves for Rs.5000/- and Rs.1000/- denominations. Actual Courier Charges shall also be recovered additionally. 4. Cheque Feature The chequ...