India Post Payments Bank announces the rollout of Aadhaar Enabled Payment Services - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

India Post Payments Bank announces the rollout of Aadhaar Enabled Payment Services.

The AEPS services will give a strong boost in expanding access to financial services for millions of unbanked and underbanked customers.

India Post Payments Bank announced Monday that it has rolled out Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS) Services. With the launch of AePS services, India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) has now become the single largest platform in the country for providing interoperable banking services to customers of 'ANY BANK' by leveraging the last mile unprecedented reach of the Postal network, stated a press release issued by the bank.
Benefit for unbanked and underbanked customers
According to the press release, with AEPS services any one with a bank account linked to Aadhaar can carry out basic banking services such as cash withdrawals and balance enquiry irrespective of the bank they hold their account with.

Ravi Shankar Prasad, union minister for Communications, Electronics & IT and Law & Justice at the launch said, "As the biggest Financial Inclusion initiative in the world, Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana brought millions into the economic mainstream. There are over 34 crore Jan Dhan accounts out of which 22 crore account holders are in rural India. With IPPB's AePS Services, we now have the ability to provide Interoperable Doorstep banking services to customers of ANY BANK including the 34 crore Jan Dhan account holders, by leveraging the unprecedented last mile reach of IPPB."
Dilip Asbe, Managing Director & CEO, National Payments Corporation of India said, “In August 2019, transaction value of AePS stood at Rs. 10,034.12 crore.”
How to avail the services
To avail these services, a customer with an Aadhaar linked account can simply authenticate his/her identity with fingerprint scan & Aadhaar authentication to complete a transaction. AEPS services are bank-agnostic and are driven by an inexpensive infrastructure enabling low-cost delivery of doorstep banking services to every section of the society without discrimination.
A.N. Nanda, Secretary, Department of Posts said, "It has been our belief that financial and banking services have a transformational impact on the lives of people and communities. For a significant majority of these people, the Postman and Grameen Dak Sevak (GDS) are the most important channel for delivery of various financial services at the last mile, making India Post Payments Bank the most accessible, affordable and trusted bank for them.
He said, "The launch of AEPS by India Post Payments Bank enhances the last mile interoperable banking infrastructure by 2.5 times. The network brings doorstep banking access to millions of underbanked customers and gives a fresh impetus to inclusion of customers facing accessibility challenges in the traditional banking ecosystem." (Source: The Economic Times)


The above Article can also be read using the link below:

India Post Payments Bank announces the rollout of Aadhaar Enabled Payment Services.

How India Post Payments Bank savings account differs from post office savings account - Pragnya IAS Academy - News Analysis.

How India Post Payments Bank savings account differs from post office savings account.

India Post Payments Bank savings account can be opened with zero balance. There are no restrictions on the number of withdrawals in a month.

The launch of India Post Payments Bank or IPPB will help in bringing the unbanked into the banking system. The government aims to link over 1.5 lakh post offices with India Post Payments Bank. As mandated by the RBI, a payments bank is not allowed to issue any form of loan or credit card. India Post Payments Bank will focus on providing basic financial services, especially through savings accounts and payments services such as social security payments, utility bill payments and money transfers. India Post Payments Bank will also provide access to third-party financial services such as mutual funds, insurance, pension, and loan products.
India Post Payments Bank has been set up as a 100% Government of India owned Public Limited Company under the Department of Posts. It will initially have 650 branches and 3,250 access points in post offices across the country.
India Post Payments Bank Regular Savings Account - Key things to know
India Post Payments Bank is offering 4% interest to its savings account customers.
India Post Payments Bank is currently not offering its customers an ATM or debit card.
IPPB account holders will be issued a QR Card with a unique QR code. The QR card in an ATM since it is not an ATM card.
The QR code will be used to identify India Post Payments Bank account holders through smartphones or micro-ATMs. Further, after verification using biometric data, the customer is paid in cash.
An India Post Payments Bank savings account can be opened with zero balance. There is no requirement for maintaining any monthly average balance.
According to RBI guidelines, you can hold a maximum of Rs 1 lakh in a savings account of a payments bank.
Funds exceeding Rs 1 lakh in the regular savings account can be transferred to the account holder’s linked Post Office Savings Account (POSA). IPPB has collaborated with the Department of Posts for opening a POSA, which will be linked to India Post Payments Bank account.
IPPB has permission to link around 17 crore postal savings bank (PSB) accounts with its own setup.
There is no cap on the number of withdrawals in a month. You can make unlimited deposits in a month, subject to the Rs 1 lakh limit.
Cheque book facility is not available.
There are no cash deposit or withdrawal charges. But for doorstep banking services, India Post Payments Bank will charge Rs 15 for digital transactions and Rs 25 for cash-based transactions.
Account holders can also use the mobile banking app for checking balance, statement, bill payments and for online transfers.
Post Office Savings Account – Key Things To Know
Postal savings accounts offer ATM facility.
Minimum amount required for opening a post office savings account is Rs 20.
Cheque facility is available if an account is opened with Rs 500 and for this purpose the minimum balance of Rs 500 in an account is maintained.
For non-cheque facility account, the minimum balance of Rs 50 has to be maintained.
The post office savings account offers 4% interest to account holders.
The cheque facility can be also be later added in an existing account.
At least one transaction of deposit or withdrawal in three financial years is necessary to keep the post office savings account active. (Source: Livemint)


The above Article can also be read using the link below:

How India Post Payments Bank savings account differs from post office savings account.