RBI Reduces The Min Requirement For Bharat Bill Payment Units!

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) advised non-banking entities on May 26 that they now need a minimum net worth of Rs 25 crore to set up Bharat Bill Payment Operating Units (BBPOU). The non-bank enterprises' minimum net worth criterion has been lowered from the previous requirement of  ?100 crore. This means that creating a payment app will be simpler now, and companies like Phonepe, Google Pay, and Paytm will face stiffer competition.

In his monetary policy announcement, RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das remarked that the BBPS had noticed an increase in the volume of bill payments and the number of billers over the years.

"The minimum net-worth criterion for non-bank Bharat Bill Payment Operating Units (BBPOUs) has been reduced to Rs 25 crore, as declared in the Statement on Development and Regulatory Policies dated April 08, 2022. In a circular, the RBI stated, "The BBPS norms have been adequately revised."

"This circular is issued under Section 10 (2) of the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007 (Act 51 of 2007) and must take effect immediately," RBI said.

Going to follow the central bank's statement in April, the net-worth criteria have been reduced.

The Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS) is an interoperable bill payment network whose scope and coverage includes all types of billers who issue recurring bills.

Users of the BBPS benefit from features such as a standardized bill payment experience, a centralized customer grievance resolution process, and a set customer convenience charge. Following the central bank's statement in April, the net-worth criteria have been reduced.

While the volume of transactions and number of onboarded billers have increased in the BBPS, there has been no comparable increase in the number of non-bank BBPOUs, according to the RBI.

It had stated that the criteria of a non-bank BBPOU having a net worth of  ?100 crore to acquire authorisation was seen as a barrier to increased involvement.

The RBI chose to harmonize the net worth requirements of non-bank BBPOUs with those of other non-bank players who handle client funds (such as payment aggregators) and have a similar risk profile in order to boost participation.