What – A ₹500 crore fund to boost payment infrastructure in India.
Purpose – encourage acquirers to deploy Points of Sale (PoS) infrastructure (both physical and digital modes) in tier-3 to tier-6 centres and north-eastern states.
Why – payments ecosystem in India has evolved greatly with wide range of options such as bank accounts, mobile phones, cards etc. The fund will give further fillip to digitization of payment systems by giving impetus to ‘acceptance infrastructure’ especially in underserved areas.
Funding – RBI will make initial donation of Rupees 250 crores to PIDF that will cover half the fund. Remaining funding will come from card issuing banks and card networks. PIDF will receive operational expenses from the banks and the card networks. RBI will also contribute to yearly shortfalls if necessity arises.
Governance – Advisory Council will govern the fund and RBI will manage and administer it.