‘Digital payments’ was the buzzword of year 2017. India, a nation that was largely dependent on cash transactions ‘Digital payments’ was the buzzword of year 2017. India, a nation that was largely dependent on cash transactions had leapfrogged into the world of alternate methods of payments.
Even though debit/credit cards and net banking were a part of the payment ecosystem, their usage was majorly based on convenience and not need. With the increased penetration of smart phones in the market, the country saw a change in the way payments were made. The affordability and availability of smart phones acted as an added advantage to the digital payment ecosystem. This led us to march towards a digital age and made digital transactions a way of life.
‘Digital payments’ was the buzzword of year 2017. India, a nation that was largely dependent on cash transactions ‘Digital payments’ was the buzzword of year 2017. India, a nation that was largely dependent on cash transactions had leapfrogged into the world of alternate methods of payments.
Even though debit/credit cards and net banking were a part of the payment ecosystem, their usage was majorly based on convenience and not need. With the increased penetration of smart phones in the market, the country saw a change in the way payments were made. The affordability and availability of smart phones acted as an added advantage to the digital payment ecosystem. This led us to march towards a digital age and made digital transactions a way of life.
The encouraging government initiatives and incentives to promote less-cash transactions also attributed to the increase in acceptance of digital payments. Under Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana, one of the biggest financial inclusion initiatives in the world, as on 28/08/2019, approximately 30 crore RuPay Debit Cards were issued to beneficiaries. Also, innovative payment methods like BHIM UPI, QR code, and Aadhar pay, made digital transactions extremely convenient thereby bringing more people under the ambit of digital India. According to National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), in August 2019, UPI transactions crossed 900 million. These numbers are a testimony to the growing acceptance of alternate methods of payments in the Indian economy.
One of the important roles in creating the required infrastructure for contributing to ‘Digital India’ was played by digital payment providers. Payment players such as AGS Transact Technologies, created a sustainable and secure, infrastructure for seamless digital payments. AGS Transact Technologies, one of India’s leading payment solutions and automation providers, provides customised cash & digital payment solutions across sectors like banking, petroleum, retail, and toll & transit.
We believe that the power of choice lies with the consumers when it comes to making payments- whether cash or digital. In line with this, the company has been relentlessly trying to expand its network of merchant acceptance points. Some of the alternate payment initiatives by AGS Transact Technologies in the recent past are ONGO PoS solutions, ONGO loyalty programs, ONGO Billing++, ONGO QR ++, and more recently the QR based Automated Fare Collection (AFC) for Kochi & Bangalore Metro, Amritsar BRTS.
While HP Fastlane by AGS, India’s first mobile fuelling app, is revolutionising the way a consumer fuels and refuels his vehicle across 124 HPCL outlets in Mumbai & Pune, the company’s UPI QR based cash withdrawal solution implemented by the Bank of India empowers the consumer to withdraw cash from ATMs using QR code thus providing a faster & more secure banking experience.
The preferences of people in our country vary from region to region and by virtue of having a population as large as ours, we foresee both cash and non-cash based products to co-exist in the future and possibly even flourish simultaneously!
Source:
PMJDY website
Data from National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)