The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has proposed guidelines to banks for payments through mobile phones. Bank customers may no longer need to log on to the Internet or visit branches. The RBI has come out with guidelines for mobile banking transactions.
Customers holding a debit or credit card can now transact up to Rs 2,500 a transaction and a maximum of Rs 5,000 a day using mobile phones. In addition banks can offer mobile banking services only after they get the nod from the RBI. Limits for single and daily transactions through mobile phones and rules that will enable RBi track down suspicious transactions via mobiles are also on the way.
RBI revealed, “This would require inter-operability between mobile banking service providers and banks and development of a host of message formats. To ensure inter-operability between banks and their mobile banking service providers, banks should adopt message formats such as ISO 8583, with suitable modification to address specific needs.”
Some of the regulations introduced by the RBI include:
According to the RBI, the introduction of these rules should enable the effortless transfer of funds whether intra bank or with other banks irrespective of the mobile networks. All customers who go for mobile banking services will be applicable to the anti-money laundering rules. Furthermore permission to provide mobile banking services will be given only to those banks that have core banking solutions.
The RBI is open to suggestions from the public beginning September 29th 2008 onwards.