Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme : RBI
Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently extended the Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) scheme by another two years and will include beneficiaries of the PM Vishwakarma scheme.
- Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme was first launched by the RBI in January 2021 for a period of three years.
- Objective is increasing the number of payment acceptance devices multifold in the country.
- PIDF is a fund set up by the RBI, in consultation with major authorised card networks, to facilitate the development of payment acceptance infrastructure in tier-3 to tier-6 cities and the north-eastern states of India.
- The Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh will also be given special focus.
- Beneficiaries of the PM SVANidhi Scheme in Tier-1 and 2 centres were later included in August 2021.
- The PIDF is funded by the RBI and the major authorized card networks in India.
- The scheme provides financial assistance to banks and non-bank financial companies (NBFCs) for the deployment of PoS terminals and other payment acceptance infrastructure in eligible regions.
