Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley launches Airtel Payments Bank
Airtel Payments Bank, India’s first payments bank, commenced national operations with services now LIVE in all 29 States of India. Arun Jaitley, Union Minster of Finance and Corporate Affairs launched Airtel Payments Bank’s national operations.
Airtel Payments Bank, a fully digital and paperless bank, aims to take basic banking services to the doorstep of every Indian by leveraging Airtel’s retail network. Starting Over 250,000 neighbourhood Airtel retail stores across the country will also function as banking points, and customers will be able to open savings accounts, deposit and withdraw cash across any of these banking points.
No transaction charges for digital payments
Airtel Payments Bank will not charge any processing fee from its customers and merchants partners for digital transactions, thereby encouraging them to adopt cashless payments.
Airtel Payments Bank App and online Debit Card
Airtel Payments Bank also rolled out its app for Android and iOS. The app can be accessed through MyAirtel app. Customers simply need to install MyAirtel app on their smartphone for a seamless access to Airtel Payments Bank services. In addition, customers would also get access to a MasterCard powered online card, which can be used to make payments across all online merchants accepting MasterCard.
Nationwide Digital Payments Ecosystem
Airtel Payments Bank will develop a nationwide merchant ecosystem of over five million partners including small kirana stores, grocers, pharmacies, restaurants, etc. These merchant partners will accept digital payments from Airtel Payments Bank customers over mobile phones. Airtel Payments Bank has launched a Merchant App for digital onboarding of partners. Anyone looking to become a merchant partner can download this app from Google Playstore for free and start accepting digital payments instantaneously.
Educating customers on digital payments
Airtel will leverage its vast base of over 260 million customers and educate them on the benefits of digital payments, with special emphasis on customers with basic/feature mobile phones to make them use their phones to make USSD based payments.
Other important features of Airtel Payments Bank
- Digital Banking: Quick and paperless account opening using Aadhaar based e-KYC. This requires no documents at all, only the customer’s Aadhaar number is needed.
- The customer’s mobile number will be his/her bank account number.
- Interest rate of 7.25 per cent p.a. on deposits in savings accounts.
- One minute of Airtel mobile talktime for every Rupee deposited at the time of opening a savings account.
- Money transfer to any bank account in India (Free money transfer from Airtel-to-Airtel numbers within Airtel Payments Bank).
- Free Personal Accidental Insurance of Rs. 1 Lac with every Savings Account.
- Easy deposit and withdrawal facility across a wide network of Airtel retail outlets.
- USSD and IVR in 12 languages for non-smartphone customers.
