Following the demonetization of high-value currency, the govt had announced that transactions made by debit cards would not be levied any fees. However, with the start of 2017, these charges have made a comeback.
Going into the New Year, the RBI has said that MDR (merchant discount rate) on transactions will be capped at 0.5% for transactions up to Rs 1,000, and 0.25% for Rs 2,000.
This, of course, has everyone worried, because there are only about 20% of ATMs operational. Which means, most people are visiting other Banks’ ATMs, to withdraw cash, and in turn will land up paying extra for transacting via cashless mode.
Ashish Sinha