Visa in works for an offline payments technology using debit cards

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Poor connectivity has been a major obstacle for financial as well as digital inclusion programme in India. To reduce dependency on the internet for payments, Visa and Innoviti payment Solutions have come together to drive a Proof of Concept (POC) for offline payments in India, according to a report in The Times of India. Innoviti has framed this POC in collaboration with Yes Bank and Axis Bank. This offline payment technology will improve financial inclusion in rural India where there has been a major issue of internet connectivity.

Innoviti, in a statement, mentioned that there has been a challenge in terms of internet connectivity in India, which has limited the growth of digital infrastructure, especially in rural areas. The offline payments technology initiative will bridge these gaps.

Technology

The new Visa debit card will have a chip that will store the value of a daily spend limit of Rs 2,000. It will have a limit of Rs 200 per transaction. This is similar to a concept where the wallet is already stored with a certain amount for the transaction. The transaction will be declined if enough amount is not present. Visa will be the first to offer this solution in the Indian market. With reduced payment failures and risks, merchants will gain revenue.

Visa had stated earlier that it is committed to RBI’s guidelines on offline payments. It said that the solution will be a gamechanger in financial inclusion across rural, urban and remote areas.