Crunchfish, HDFC Bank, and another Indian bank are piloting a new payment solution that works without the need for a network. The project, which is being monitored by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) under its Regulatory Sandbox program, aims to deliver a robust and inclusive digital payment system by utilizing offline payments as the fundamental building block.
The need for offline payment solutions
Online real-time payment services are susceptible to temporary outages, which can be caused by poor connectivity, congested remitting or beneficiary banks, or payment switch downs. Offline payment schemes provide survivability in such cases and can facilitate instant online transactions, whereas the reverse is not true.
Crunchfish and HDFC Bank’s pilot project
Crunchfish was included in the RBI’s Regulatory Sandbox in September 2022, and its integration of Crunchfish Digital Cash offline was ready in October of the same year. The pilot began in December 2023, and HDFC Bank has now published a description of their implementation of the solution as “OfflinePay – Payments that work, without any network.”
The RBI’s Regulatory Sandbox program
The RBI established its Regulatory Sandbox program in 2020 to foster innovation in financial services and bring benefits to end-users. The program allows market participants to test new financial services and products with customers in a live environment, with certain safeguards and oversight in place. Approval to participate in the Regulatory Sandbox requires that the proposed financial service include new or innovative technology, address a problem, and bring benefits to consumers.
Crunchfish, HDFC Bank, and their partner are taking a significant step forward in delivering a robust and inclusive digital payment system in India by utilizing offline payments as the fundamental building block. The project is being monitored by the RBI’s Regulatory Sandbox program and has been scaled up significantly in terms of the number of payers and merchants involved.
Julia Brown – Category – Entertainment
Julia Brown is a Master’s in Business Administration by education. After completing her post-graduation, Julia jumped the journalism bandwagon as a freelance journalist. Soon after that she landed a job as a reporter and has been climbing the news industry ladder ever since to reach the post of editor. As an avid day reader, Julia is a writer of Entertainment and writes tirelessly on Entertainment news. She has extensive knowledge in analysis & Entertainment news writing.
Email: [email protected]
Address: 10397 217th Place Northeast, Arlington, WA 98223 USA
Contact number: 425-353-5499
