Question : e-Wallet Companies

(a) whether the Government has reviewed the problems cropping up in use of net banking/ debit card in the country and if so, the details thereof;
(b) whether any private mobile wallet company has imposed two per cent charge for topping up its credit and wallet in the recent past;
(c) if so, the details thereof and the reasons therefor;
(d) whether the Government has issued draft guidelines for transactions through prepaid instruments such as mobile wallet, smart card and paper vouchers and invited suggestions from all parties; and
(e) if so, the details thereof and the action taken/ being taken by the Government thereon?

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF FINANCE


(a): Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines, issued vide its Master Circular on Credit Card, Debit Card and Rupee Denominated Co-branded Pre-paid Card Operations of Banks and Credit Card issuing NBFCs, dated 1st July 2015, provide that banks put in place an effective mechanism for redressal of customer complaints, place the grievance redressal procedure of the bank and the timeframe fixed for responding to complaints on the bank’s website, and acknowledge the complaints. If a complainant does not get satisfactory response from the bank within thirty days of lodging the complaint, the complainant has the option to approach the Banking Ombudsman concerned for redressal of grievance.

(b) and (c): One97 Communications company, whose consumer brand is Paytm, imposed 2% fee on adding money to e-wallet using credit cards on 9th March 2017 and the same was withdrawn the next day.

(d) and (e): RBI’s Master Circular on Issuance and Operation of Pre-paid Payment Instruments (PPIs) in India provides the necessary regulatory framework for operation of PPIs in the country. E-wallets are also part of this framework. As part of a comprehensive review of PPI guidelines, a draft circular on Master Directions on Issuance and Operations of PPIs in India has been placed on the website of RBI, for public comments, on 20th March 2017.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has published on its website draft Rules on Security of Prepaid Payment Instruments under the Information Technology Act, 2000, inviting comments from all stakeholders and the public at large. The objective of the proposed rules is to ensure adequate integrity, security and confidentiality of electronic payments effected through electronic PPIs.
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