Two new incentives to boost BHIM app adoption: Jaitley

BHIM was launched on December 30, 2016 and is currently available on Google's Play Store.

New Delhi, Feb 1: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday announced two new schemes to boost the adoption of BHIM (Bharat Interface for Money) digital payment app. "Nearly 125 lakh people have adopted the BHIM app. Government will launch two new schemes -- a referral bonus for consumers and a cash-back scheme for merchants -- to promote the use of BHIM," Jaitely said while presenting the Union Budget 2017-18 in the Lok Sabha.

Launched on December 30, the Unified Payments Interface (UPI)-based BHIM app is currently available on Google's Play Store.

"From setting up a separate payments regulatory body to providing cash-backs to BHIM merchants are good initiatives to further boost the digital payments landscape that will lead to financial inclusion in the country," Saket Modi, CEO and co-founder of Lucideus, the IT risk assessment company that provides security for BHIM, told IANS.

"Setting up the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) for the financial sector was a need of the hour and we are happy to see it being addressed by the Finance Minister. We now hope the execution happens in a timely and efficient manner for all the mentioned initiatives," Modi added.

IANS