Philippines to follow Singapore in launching RuPay card: Report

According to a media report, the Philippines is the next market for India to launch its RuPay card, the second southeast nation to do so following Singapore.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in 2018 launched three Indian mobile payment apps in Singapore.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in 2018 launched three Indian mobile payment apps in Singapore. Photo courtesy: HCI Singapore

Last week, the two countries had initiated a dialogue on how New Delhi could help the Philippines set up the infrastructure for digital payments, financial inclusion and direct benefit transfers (DBT), the Mint reported.

Discussions were held on how India could share its system for DBT using a national ID, such as the Aadhaar number, to ensure that pension and payments reach the intended beneficiaries directly, cutting down on middlemen and corruption.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had in 2018 launched three Indian mobile payment apps in Singapore. India’s RuPay digital payments system was linked up with Singapore’s 33-year old Network for Electronic Transfers (NETS).

The Singapore branch of the State Bank of India SBI was the first to launch this new mode of remittance in collaboration with National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI).