Will smoothen the transaction and settlement process and creating an effective payment channel
FINO, India’s leading provider of financial inclusion services, in collaboration with the Uttar Pradesh Forest Corporation (UPFC), today launched a Smart Card based collection and payment disbursal system for Tendu leaves collectors at Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh (UP). The project is supported by ICICI Bank and other banks.
The smart card based payment disbursal system brings a host of advantages to the collectors. While, it is expected smoothen the entire transaction and settlement process of Tendu Leaf Management, create an effective and transparent payment channel as well as serve the purpose of taking banking services to the doorstep of a large number of unbanked and under-banked population in UP.
Shri R C Gautam IFS, Managing Director, UPFC, while speaking at the occasion said, “A lot of hard work and physical labour goes into Tendu leaves collection. It is our duty and responsibility to ensure that the collectors get their dues in a fair, transparent and timely manner. We are happy to welcome FINO in partnership with ICICI Bank and other Banks who have stepped in to enable this system. I m sure the project will be a resounding success which will be of immense benefit to the tendu leaves collectors.”
Mr. Manish Khera, CEO FINO Ltd. while thanking the UPFC, on the occasion said, “We appreciate the trust and faith reposed in us by UPFC to manage this mandate. This project will not only ease the entire process of collection and payment disbursement but also access to banking products and services. I am sure this initiative will help bring in financial responsibility and independence for the collectors who traditionally didn’t have access to these benefits. This project also fulfills the Government of India vision of providing banking services to rural India under the Swabhimaan programme. We would also like to thank ICICI Bank for partnering us in this project.”
How it works:
As a first step, FINO along with ICICI Bank will enroll the collectors in the Lalitpur District area and equip them with biometric smart cards. These smart cards are linked to the no-frill accounts that ICICI Bank will open for the enrolled collectors. The photograph and finger prints of the collector are captured on the card bearing a Unique Registration Number (URN). This card is then used to record the number of Tendu patta bundles submitted by the collector and to receive the payment for the same.
The next step is the actual collection of bundles and the disbursement of payments. All the collectors will bring in their collection for an entire day to a phad designated who is registered with the UPFC. Here the collectors will meet the FINO Block Coordinators and Government Officials.
A two-step process has been put into place at this point to ensure smooth functioning. At the first point, the daily collection of a collector is directly fed into their smart cards via handheld Point of Transaction (POT) terminals. The system automatically calculates the amount due to be paid to the collector and a receipt is issued to the collector. At the second point, payment is made to the collector based on the amount displayed on the receipt. The collector has the option of accepting the payment in cash or having it credited to his/her account with the Bank.
This system replaces the current system of tokens which are issued and usually settled for payment in 2-3 weeks time.
About FINO:
FINO is working to achieve total financial inclusion in the country by not only providing a complete technology payments platform but also managing the cash on the field through its agent (bandhu) network spread across the country, On the front end the FINO platform is working on POT-Card and Mobile infrastructure. The Company has a comprehensive product suite ranging from savings bank accounts, loan products, recurring deposits, remittances, insurance products, government disbursements etc. FINO at present has a customer base of over 24 million customers and is currently acquiring incrementally over 50,000 customers per day. FINO is doing more than 3 million transactions per month through its network of 12,000 agents spread in 23 states and more than 293 districts in the country
FINO has an alliance with Axis Bank, Corporation Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, ING Vyasa Bank, OBC, PNB, SBI and Union Bank of India. The company is also involved in government-funded schemes such as the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act and the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana through ICICI Lombard.
Poised to bigger growth FINO has been awarded with 14th Asia Insurance Industry “Best Technology Initiative 2010” Award & 2010 Financial Times Sustainable Banking award in category “Achievement in Banking at Base of the Pyramid”. FINO has received numerous awards including the Manthan 2010, eINDIA2010 – “Best Financial Inclusion Initiative” Award, INTEL, Duet Award, Frost & Sullivan South Asia Product Line Strategy Award and Excellence in Innovation Award in Indira International Innovation Summit. FINO has also been honored by Edge Network for using Information Technology in maximizing business impact.
