The Reserve Bank of India has barred Payment System Operators (PSOs) from launching any new proprietary QR code for payment transactions. Currently, there are two interoperable QR codes — UPI QR and Bharat QR.
The decision to continue with the two existing Quick Response (QR) codes was based on the recommendations of the committee which was set up by the Reserve Bank under the chairmanship of Deepak Phatak to review the current system of such codes in India and suggest measures for moving towards interoperable QR codes.
QR codes are two-dimensional machine-readable barcodes, which are increasingly used to facilitate mobile payments at the point-of-sale. QR codes can store a large amount of information. PSOs that use proprietary QR codes shall shift to one or more interoperable QR codes; the process of migration shall be completed by March 31, 2022.
Important takeaways for all competitive exams:
- Governor of RBI: Shaktikanta Das.
- Deputy Governors of RBI: BP Kanungo, MK Jain, MD Patra and Rajeshwar Rao.
- Headquarters: Mumbai, Maharashtra.