HDFC Bank: The largest private sector bank in India, HDFC Bank, has launched a pilot project for offline digital payments. HDFC Bank and Crunchfish have collaborated on the development of the OfflinePay solution as part of the Regulatory Sandbox Program of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Customers and businesses can use this solution to send and receive payments without having to use a mobile network.
HDFC Bank is the first bank in the country to offer this solution, which enables digital payments to be made in rural towns and small villages with poor mobile network coverage. Additionally, cashless transactions at large public events, exhibitions, and trade fairs, which are typically congested with mobile network traffic, are made easier with the OfflinePay solution.
It is difficult to use traditional digital payment methods in areas with poor connectivity because they require one of the parties to the transaction to be online. However, HDFC Bank’s “OfflinePay” solution makes it possible for both the customer and the merchant to carry out transactions without the need for an internet connection.
According to HDFC Bank, the solution enables offline payment confirmation for merchants, and once either the merchant or the customer is back online, the transaction is settled. During the four-month pilot phase, which will take place in more than 16 cities and towns throughout India, the service will be accessible to customers of other banks via an invitation link. OfflinePay transactions will be limited to INR 200 per transaction during the pilot.
In addition, offline payments can be made in network blind spots like parking lots, underground metro stations, retail stores, airplanes, trains, and ships. As part of the regulatory sandbox program, the RBI approved the HDFC Bank and Crunchfish application in September 2022. In India, offline digital payments may enter a new era if this pilot project is successful.
Crunchfish Digital Cash AB is a Nasdaq-listed subsidiary of Crunchfish AB. HDFC Bank and Crunchfish have been collaborating with the RBI on the regulatory sandbox program for a long time. The country may expand its use of offline digital payments if the pilot project is successful.
