Press Information Bureau

Government of India

Ministry of Finance

11-May-2012 17:42 IST

Rupay System

National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI) is an authorized entity under Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007. The Reserve Bank of India has granted approval of the NPCI for the following:

1) Public launch of RUPAY affiliated cards issued by banks (for use at ATMs and micro-ATMs).

2) Pilot launch of RUPAY affiliated Debit Card (issued by banks).

It is an approve card payment network like Mastercard and VISA.

As a further step towards Financial Inclusion, the Issue of RUPAY affiliated cards by banks will enable cashless transaction where such cards are used at Point of Sale (POS) and Micro ATMs.

This information was given by the Minister of State for Finance, Shri Namo Narain Meena in written reply to a question in Lok Sabha today.

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DSM/SS/Hb

Payment network approval enables a domestic card scheme to operate as an authorized network facilitating cashless transactions. Approval under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 authorized a domestic payment entity to operate a card payment network and permit public issuance of affiliated cards by banks for ATM and micro ATM use and a pilot debit card launch, enabling banks to issue cards on the approved network and to enable cashless transactions at Point of Sale and Micro ATM channels.