The Indian economy is steadily gaining momentum brought about by the Digital India movement. The Voice of Asia report by Deloitte asserts that India is one of the leading players of digital transaction. It says that the government has managed to save INR 36,144 Crore over the course of last two years by directly transferring benefits via the Aadhaar Payment Bridge. In February this year, Gujarat became the first state in India to set up a cashless system in its food grain public distribution system (PDS). Aadhaar enabled payment system (AEPS) was installed in approximately 17,250 fair price shops to make sure that people eligible for subsidised food grains under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) would only need to present their Aadhaar numbers to collect the allotted rations.
Spice Money, Spice Digital’s Fintech initiative has been continuously working toward its vision to serving the underserved. Spice Digital was granted the prepaid payment instrument (PPI – semi-closed) wallet licence from the RBI, way back in 2015, and since then Spice Money has spread far and wide with the conviction to bring technology solutions to the financial aids of the masses. Spice Money has, in fact, crossed the 550 crores mark gross merchandise volume (GMV) in the month of July 2017, thus solidifying its credentials in the post demonetization era.
Aadhaar enabled payment system is yet another offering by SDL. Starting off with a business volume of 6.4 crores and a total of 1,576 transacting counters in January 2017, Spice Money has spread its base to 65 crores and 10,000 transacting counters till July.
India is a nation deficit in the required number of ATMs. According to the recent statistics by The Central Bank there is one cash point for every 6,500 Indians. AEPS biometric transactions are a convenient alternative to cashless payments and ATM services. Even for the banks, setting up and maintaining an ATM unit requires a certain amount of spending. AEPS transactions will not only be convenient for the end consumers, it will be an economical solution for banks as well. Needless to say, rural areas and the underprivileged of the nation are the worst affected. Daily wage earners often find it difficult to avail banking services due to the hassles of formality and time. Visiting ATMs or even for that matter always keeping cash in hand is a cumbersome job. Spice Money counters enabled as mini-ATMs via AEPS, will make life much simpler. With spice money retail outlets reaching far and wide, walking miles to find an ATM will no longer be a hassle. Aadhar enabled payments made via biometric verification are not only convenient but also safe. In support of the government’s vision and endeavours toward a cashless economy, Spice Digital is gradually paving the way toward digitization in the farthest corners of the nation.
Spice Digital Limited is an organization that moves ahead with the times and has chosen to extend the benefits of a changing economic environment by offering biometric transactions to the remote areas of India through Spice Money. While making AEPS accessible to the sections of India that rarely feature on the economical map of the country.
– Saket Aggarwal
Global CEO, Spice Digital Ltd (SDL)
