RBI permits cash deposit through UPI
During the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) inaugural bimonthly committee meeting for the fiscal year 2024–25 on Friday, Governor Shaktikanta Das suggested allowing third-party Unified Payments Interface (UPI) applications to facilitate payments and cash deposits at cash deposit machines (CDMs).
The central bank additionally opted to authorise the association of prepaid payment instruments (PPIs) with third-party UPI applications.
During the announcement of the first bimonthly monetary policy for the ongoing financial year, the governor highlighted that the deployment of CDMs by banks not only enhances customer convenience but also diminishes the cash-handling burden on bank branches.
Shivaji Thapliyal, Head of Research and Lead Analyst at Yes Securities, remarked that it would be intriguing to observe potential scenarios arising from the access of other PPI wallets by third-party UPI applications, such as Paytm. He emphasized that the noteworthy factors to monitor would encompass commercial aspects and the level of adoption permitted by merchants on the ground.
The central bank retained the real GDP growth projection for the current fiscal year at 7 per cent. Adjustments were made to the GDP growth targets for Q1 FY25, revised to 7.1 per cent from the previous 7.2 per cent, and for Q2 FY25, adjusted to 6.9 per cent from the prior forecast of 6.8 per cent.
