According to the Financial Stability Report 2015-16 from RBI, digital transactions are up by 10 percent in terms of volume with 95.2 percent of total value being paid digitally. Major credit for the increase goes to transactions done through mobile wallets and prepaid cards alongside reforms released by Finance ministry for easy payments. The report reveals that there has been a 140 percent increase in prepaid card transactions in hand with a 150 percent increase in mobile wallet transactions. RBI further states,
The value of transactions through prepaid cards increased to Rs 25,400 crore from Rs 10,500 crore, and for mobile wallets it grew to Rs 20,600 crore from Rs 8,200 crore last year.
There has been a growing trend for mobile wallets due to the fact it provides easy access, discounts, different payment options and a vast merchant reach to its users. Users can shop, recharge, make and receive payments from their smartphones in few minutes only. Last year, the share of digital transactions was only 74 percent and now it has went up to 84.4 percent in terms of volume this year.
Speaking on prepaid cards, these include gift cards, foreign travel cards, corporate cards etc. which provide swap and pay option at the point of sales terminals for payments. People are also opting for credit cards as a payment method with a growth of 16 percent this year, which is up by 6 percent compared to figures of 2014-2015.
However, debit cards have seen a downfall in the reports with a growth rate of only 19 percent compared to its 40 percent growth rate in the previous year. Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) was the key reason for such an accelerated growth of debit cards in the previous year — where in every account holder was issued a Rupay debit card. With the fall in account openings, the growth rate of debit cards has also declined.
The figures for digital transactions are expected to increase in reports for 2016-2017 due to the demonetization drive. Mass upsurge has been witnessed in digital transactions since the announcement. With digital wallets partnering with banks and varied offers being out, people are constantly moving towards digital channels to complete payments.
