UniFocus IAS ( UNIFOCUS UNIVERSAL )

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) integrated its three erstwhile Ombudsman Schemes viz. (i)  the Banking Ombudsman Scheme, 2006 , (ii)  the Ombudsman Scheme for Non-Banking Financial Companies, 2018 , and (iii)  the Ombudsman Scheme for Digital Transactions, 2019 , into one Scheme - ‘ The Reserve Bank - Integrated Ombudsman Scheme, 2021  (the Scheme / RB-IOS, 2021)’ with effect from November 12, 2021. The Scheme simplifies the grievance redress process at RBI by enabling the customers of Regulated Entities (REs) like banks, Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs), Payment System Participants (PSPs) and Credit Information Companies to register their complaints at one centralised reference point. The objective of the Scheme is to resolve the customer grievances involving ‘deficiency in service’ on part of REs in a speedy, cost-effective and satisfactory manner. These FAQs provide information on RB-IOS, 2021 and related aspects. In addition to integrating the three existing s...

The Reserve Bank of India, in 2015, introduced an Internal Ombudsman (IO) mechanism in select scheduled commercial banks with the objective to strengthen their Internal Grievance Redress (IGR) system and to ensure efficient and fair resolution of customer complaints by enabling an apex level review within the banks before their rejection. Gradually, the framework has been extended to other regulated entities (REs), viz. select Non-Bank System Participants (non-bank issuers of PPIs), select Non-Banking Financial Companies and all Credit Information Companies. The guidelines on Internal Ombudsman framework currently in operation for various categories of REs have similar design features but carry certain variations on operational matters. Based on the learnings from the implementation of the extant IO guidelines, it has been decided to harmonise the same and issue a consolidated Master Direction. The Master Direction shall bring uniformity in matters like timeline for escalation of compl...

RBI introduced  Card-on-File Tokenisation (CoFT) in September 2021  and began implementation from October 1, 2022. So far, over 56 crore tokens have been created on which transactions with value of over Rs. 5 lakh crore have been undertaken. Tokenisation has improved transaction security and transaction approval rate. At present, Card-on-File(CoF) token can only be created through merchant’s application or webpage. It is now proposed to introduce CoF token creation facilities directly at the issuer bank level. This measure will enhance convenience for cardholders to get tokens created and linked to their existing accounts with various e-commerce applications. Instructions in this regard will be issued separately. Reference: RBI Press Release Dated   Oct 06, 2023 Previous Article: <<<  Device based Tokenisation – Card Transactions

The   Payments Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) Scheme   was operationalised by the Reserve Bank in January 2021 for a period of three years. The objective was to incentivise the deployment of payment acceptance infrastructure such as physical Point of Sale (PoS), Quick Response (QR) codes in tier-3 to tier-6 centres, north eastern states and Union Territories of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh. Beneficiaries of PM SVANidhi Scheme in Tier-1 and 2 centres were later included in August 2021. As at end-August 2023, over 2.66 crore new touch points have been deployed under the Scheme. It is now proposed to extend the PIDF Scheme by a further period of two years, i.e., upto December 31, 2025. Also, it is proposed to include beneficiaries of PM Vishwakarma Scheme in all centres under the PIDF Scheme. This decision to expand the targeted beneficiaries under the PIDF scheme will provide fillip to the Reserve Bank’s efforts towards promoting digital transactions at the grassroots ...

The Paratethys sea, Paratethys ocean, Paratethys realm or just Paratethys was a large shallow inland sea that stretched from the region north of the Alps over Central Europe to the Aral Sea in Central Asia. Paratethys was peculiar due to its paleogeography: it consisted of a series of deep basins, formed during the Oxfordian stage of the Late Jurassic as an extension of the rift that formed the Central Atlantic Ocean. These basins were connected with each other and the global ocean by narrow and shallow seaways that often limited water exchange and caused widespread long-term anoxia. Paratethys was at times reconnected with the Tethys or its successors (the Mediterranean Sea or the Indian Ocean) during the Oligocene and the early and middle Miocene times, but at the onset of the late Miocene epoch, the tectonically trapped sea turned into a megalake from the eastern Alps to what is now Kazakhstan. From the Pliocene epoch onward (after 5  million years ago), Paratethys became progre...