e-RUPI
- e-RUPI is basically a digital voucher which a beneficiary gets on his phone in the form of an SMS or QR code.
- It is a pre-paid voucher, which he/she can go and redeem at any center that accepts it.
- Thus e-RUPI is a one time contactless, cashless voucher-based mode of payment that helps users redeem the voucher without a card, digital payments app, or internet banking access.
Advantageous to the Consumer
- E-RUPI does not require the beneficiary to have a bank account, a major distinguishing feature as compared to other digital payment forms.
- It ensures an easy, contactless two-step redemption process that does not require sharing of personal details either.
- The e-RUPI is operable on basic phones also, and hence it can be used by persons who do not own smart-phones or in places that lack internet connection.
Benefits to the Service Providers
- Being a prepaid voucher, e-RUPI would assure real time payments to the service provider.
Development
- The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which oversees the digital payments ecosystem in India, has launched e-RUPI, a voucher-based payments system to promote cashless transactions.
- It has been developed in collaboration with the Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare and National Health Authority.
Which Banks issue e-RUPI?
- NPCI has partnered with 11 banks for e-RUPI transactions.
- They are Axis Bank, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, Indian Bank, IndusInd Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Punjab National Bank, and State Bank of India and Union Bank of India.
- The acquiring Apps are Bharat Pe, BHIM Baroda Merchant Pay, Pine Labs, PNB Merchant Pay and YoNo SBI Merchant Pay.
Where can e-RUPI be used now?
- To begin with NPCI has tied up with more than 1,600 hospitals where e-RUPI can be redeemed.
- Experts say, in the days to come the user base of e-RUPI is expected to widen, with even the private sector using it to deliver employee benefits and MSMEs adopting it for Business To Business (B2B) transactions.