If the largest lender SBI has its way, it may herald the beginning of the end of the ubiquitous debit cards from the banking system as the bank plans to promote more digital payment solutions and eliminate the plastic cards.
This is despite the huge reliance on debit cards by customers of SBI which services a fifth of the population.
SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar said at the annual Fibac, “It is our wish to eliminate the debit cards, and am sure we can eliminate them”.
All over the country, there are 90 Cr debit cards out of which 3 Cr credit cards and pointed out to digital solution like it’s own ‘YONO’ platform as the key for achieving a debit card-less country, said Kumar. According to him, through the Yono platform, one can withdraw cash at the automated teller machines or pay for purchases at a merchant establishment without having a card at all. The bank has already set up 68,000 ‘Yono cashpoints’ and is in the process of scaling it up massively to over 1 million in the next 18 months, which will make the necessity to have a card even less, he added. Additionally, the Yono platform can also give credit for buying certain merchandise, making the credit card in the pocket also as a ‘stand-by’.
Pointing out that virtual coupons are the future, Kumar addresses that in the next five years, there will be a limited need to have any plastic cards in your pocket.
According to Kumar, at present, the QR code is also a very inexpensive way of ensuring payments.
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