AADHAR enabled payment system

The UIDAI to enable more financial inclusion with Aadhar card has allowed Aadhaar Enabled Bank Account (AEBA) holders from marginalized sections of the society to have access with the banking system. The UIDAI, which acts as a centralized authority for Aadhar has joined hands with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to develop a platform mainly focused towards the marginalized section to secure access to banking via micro-ATMs by using Aadhaar authentication.

Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AePS) is a system developed by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) that allows people to carry out financial transactions on a Micro-ATM by furnishing just their Aadhaar number and verifying it with the help of their fingerprint/iris scan.

Services offered by AePS The following are the list of services provided by AePS:

• Cash Withdrawal
• Balance Inquiry
• Mini Statement
• Best Finger Detection
• Cash Depository
• Aadhar to Aadhaar Fund Transfer

Objectives of AePS

• To build a strong foundation for a full range of Aadhar enabled banking services.
• To enable banks in India to route the Aadhar initiated inter-bank transactions via a central switching and clearing agency.
• To facilitate inter-operability across the banks through a safe and secure manner.
• To Sub–Serve the goal of the government of India and the country’s Central Bank (RBI) in encouraging financial inclusion.
• To subserve the RBI’s goal in electronification of retail payments.
• To build a strong foundation for a full range of Aadhar enabled banking services.
• To facilitate the government of India’s entitlements like Social Security Pension, Handicapped Old Age Pension Schemes, NREGA and so on of both the Central and State government entities via Aadhar and authentication thereof as supported by the UIDAI.

Benefits of AePS:

• Banking correspondents of one bank can perform transactions of other banks as well.
• Banking, as well as non-banking transactions, can be performed through a banking correspondent.
• People do not have to furnish their debit/credit card for making transactions through AePS.
• Micro PoS machines can be taken to distant places enabling people in remote villages to make transactions instantly.
• The fingerprint is needed for transaction authentication which makes it safer.

Points to Remember while using the AePS:

• The AePS supports those transactions between Aadhaar linked bank accounts only.
• If in case, you have more than one account in one bank, then the primary account will only be used under the AePS.
• It is mandatory to link bank account with Aadhaar if you wish to avail the services of AePS.
• The cutover of transactions done through AePS takes place at 11 pm every day.
• There is no need for PIN or OTP for making transactions through AePS.
• If any transaction has been done before this time during the day, they all will be included in the statement.
• Multiple bank accounts can be linked with Aadhaar to avail the AePS facility. However, only one account per bank can be used to use this facility.