Airtel payments bank expands services to over 200 villages in 4 states

Airtel’s payment bank has expanded its operations to 200-plus villages across Rajasthan, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka with at least one Airtel Payments Bank outlet in each village offering basic banking services, including cash deposits, withdrawals, and seamless money transfer facilities.

As the company plans to expand its payments banking services to 5,000 villages across the country, it’s aiming to reduce the dependence on cash transactions by rolling out financial services to millions outside the banking system.

Airtel Payments Bank, India’s first payment bank service is a unit of Bharti Airtel, in which the country's largest telecom company owns 80 percent while the remaining shares are held by Kotak Mahindra Bank.

According to the company, Airtel's payments banking services would help cashless purchases of farm produce, goods and services through mobile phones.

The pilot for the payments bank service was started by the telecom company last year, starting from Rajasthan with 10,000 retail outlets. It offers an annual interest of 7.25 percent and a Rs 1 lakh personal accident insurance cover to account holders. It is planning to expand its reach to about 1,00,000 outlets by the end of this year.