Central Government Launches BHARAT QR Code for Encouraging Digital Payments - (20 Feb 2017)

Banking

The Central Government has recently launched Bharat QR code, a Quick Response (QR) code to enable digital payments without card swiping machines. This is yet another step by the Government post demonetization drive in a bid to boost digital transactions as an alternate to cash transactions. The Bharat QR is developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in association with MasterCard, Visa and American Express. The QR code is a matrix barcode or a two-dimensional barcode that can be scanned and read by standard smart phones. The Bharat QR is world’s first interoperable payment acceptance solution. Bharat QR provides a universal code through which customers can opt to pay for products and services via the most common financial service providers including RuPay, MasterCard, Visa and American Express.

Presently, digital payment requires a consumer to swipe a debit or a credit card and enter its PIN code to authenticate the payment. However, through Bharat QR code, a consumer can simply open his or her banking app or BHIM app, scan the merchant's QR code, enter the payable amount and enter the four digit code to authenticate the transaction. The amount will be directly transferred to the merchant’s bank account once the transaction is complete. Bharat QR code will provide customers with an easy scan and pay option irrespective of their card type. Both the merchant and the customer will receive instant notification after the payment is successful. Further, both the parties involved in the transaction must be using the same payment service to make it possible.

The use of Bharat QR code will help the merchants in avoiding investments in PoS machines and the transaction fees charged by the banks for transactions through the PoS systems. Now the merchants will just need to avail the Bharat QR code for their business outlet and display it at the payment desk. Infact, Bharat QR code will certainly remove lot of discrepancies in using digital money for the people. Indeed, the individual payment portals like Paytm, Freecharge etc. required money to be transferred into their wallets first and then be used for further payments and further in order to make payments through these portals, both the parties involved in the transaction were required to use the same payment service to make it possible and from the merchant’s perspective, these Apps charge a transactional fee from them. There is also a limit to the amount of payment that can be put in these portals.

However, the Bharat QR code will eliminate all such roadblocks as it is directly linked to the bank. The payments will go straight to the merchant’s bank account through IMPS. Also, there is no limit to the amount of money the merchant can put in the bank. Now, the digital payments will be made much easier for both the parties after the launch of Bharat QR. It is yet another step by the Central Government to demoralize the cash transaction and promote more and more digital way of payments in daily course of business.

Tags : QR CODE LAUNCH DIGITAL PAYMENTS