IDFC Bank is implementing a plan to make ration shops banking outlets. It is enrolling Public Distribution System agents as business correspondents. The bank sees scope to expand its footprint through this plan as the states are implementing ePDS agenda, where payments are transferred electronically to distributors. The bank has received mandate from Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra governments to undertake cashless payments at PDS outlets. It is now in talks with other state government. The bank had recently rolled out IDFC Aadhaar Pay in association with the UIDAI, which involves use of POS that has a fingerprint scanner, which facilitates account-to-account transfers using Aadhaar. The customer does not need to swipe a debit card, remember passwords or own a cellphone. Rajiv Lall, MD and CEO of the bank, said in rural and semi-urban areas, where customers need assisted digital banking formats, the bank’s Aadhaar merchant solution is a perfect fit. The merchant benefits from the medium, as this is a new AEPS payment railroad, it has no merchant discount rate attached to it and can provide the service to customers without having to pay the bank a transaction fee, he added. The bank said it is proposing to enroll over 3200 PDS outlets in Andhra Pradesh into its cashless system and has deployed micro ATMs in such outlets. It has also started work on this plan in Maharashtra.
