SBI Launches RuPay Platinum Debit Card

Country’s largest lender State Bank on Thursday launched a RuPay Platinum debit card in association with National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI).

• The RuPay card comes with a special feature for the convenience of customers that is accepted at all payment channels- ATMs, PoS and eCommerce.
• NPCI will soon launch international RuPay debit cards allowing its customers to use them outside the country besides issuing RuPay credit cards by January 2016.
• The card would be initially issued free to customers maintaining a quarterly balance of Rs 50,000.
• The card offers various benefits like 5 per cent cash back on utility bills, complimentary airport lounge access
•  It also offers  personal accident death and permanent total disability insurance cover of Rs 2 lakh.
•  SBI has 19.7 crore debit cards in circulation and of which 4.5 crore are RuPay cards.
•  In the year ended March 2015, the bank saw a 37 per cent rise in its debit card transaction at Rs 30,785 crore from Rs 22,407 crore last year.

Benefits of RuPay Card :

• Lower cost and affordability
• Customized product offering
• Protection of information related to Indian consumers
• Provide electronic product options to untapped/unexplored consumer segment
• Inter-operability between payment channels and products

About NPCI :

• Full Form : National Payments Corporation of India
• The core objective was to consolidate and integrate the multiple systems with varying service levels into nation-wide uniform and standard business process for all retail payment systems.
• Headquarters : Mumbai, Maharashtra, India & Founded : 2008
•  Presently, there are ten core promoter banks (State Bank of India, Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Bank of Baroda, Union Bank of India, Bank of India, ICICI Bank, HDFC Bank, Citibank and HSBC)
•  Chairman : M.Balachandran

Services Portfolio :

• National Financial Switch (NFS)
• Immediate Payment Service (IMPS)
• National Automated Clearing House
• Aadhaar Payments Bridge System (APBS)
• Cheque Truncation System (CTS)
• Aadhaar-enabled payment system (AEPS)
• RuPay – Domestic Card Scheme