Last month, the central bank barred Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) from accepting deposits, credit transactions, or top-ups in any customer accounts, wallets, NCMC and FASTags. NCMC stands for National Common Mobility Card, which is an interoperable transport card facilitated by the Indian government for travel on metro and buses.
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday permitted bank, non-bank managed prepaid payment instruments to make payments across various public transport systems. It said these instructions are issued under Section 18 read with Section 10 (2) of Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (Act 51 of 2007). The instructions will come into effect immediately.
"Public transport systems across the country cater to a multitude of commuters on a daily basis. To provide convenience, speed, affordability, and safety of digital modes of payment to commuters for transit services, it has been decided to permit authorised bank and non-bank PPI issuers to issue PPIs for making payments across various public transport systems," the RBI said in a notification on February 23.
Last month, the central bank barred Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) from accepting deposits, credit transactions, or top-ups in any customer accounts, wallets, NCMC and FASTags. NCMC stands for National Common Mobility Card, which is an interoperable transport card facilitated by the Indian government for travel on metro and buses.
Later this month, the RBI gave Paytm Payments Bank another 15 days until March 15, 2024, to cease accepting deposits, credit transactions, or top-ups in any customer accounts, wallets, NCMC and FASTags.
It said: "Users can continue to utilise NCMC cards issued by Paytm Payments Bank until the available balance is exhausted. However, they won't be able to add funds to these cards after March 15, 2024. Users are advised to obtain NCMC cards from other banks or non-bank prepaid instrument (PPI) issuers before the deadline to avoid inconvenience."
