The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) on Friday announced the launch of mobile application for Aadhaar-based payments through Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) app for merchants. The service was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Nagpur. The new service will allow customers to make purchases using their Aadhaar number linked with their bank account. The transaction will require customer's fingerprint for authentication.
“This will directly cater to about 40 crore bank account customers spread across the country whose account is linked with Aadhaar. It is a huge opportunity for enabling digital transactions as about 99 per cent of adult population is now aadhaar enabled,” NPCI managing director and CEO, AP Hota said. Currently, over 30 banks are participating on BHIM Aadhaar and more member banks shall be on-board, NPCI said. BHIM Aadhaar would be applicable for retail merchants only and not for corporate merchants, it said.