RBI To Roll Out 24x7 NEFT Facility From December Onwards To Further Boost Online Payments

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will start permitting 24x7 National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) facility from December onwards this year (2019), reports PTI. Currently, NEFT, which is a retail payment mechanism for transactions up to Rs 2 lakh, is only available between 8 am and 7 pm on working days.

The move “is expected to revolutionise the retail payments system of the country” according to the RBI. The central bank had outlined the proposal in its Payment System Vision 2021 document as well.

This is the latest decision from the RBI seeking to make online payments more convenient for users. Previously in June it had removed charges on NEFT and Real Time Gross System (RTGS) transactions. RTGS is a funds payment mechanism which is used for large online transfers instantaneously.

Moreover, the central bank has already formed a committee, which includes representatives from various stakeholders, in order to scrutinise the range of ATM charges.