Spice Digital, has received an in-principle approval from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate under the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS). The BBPS is a centralized bill payment system that will allow users to use a single website or outlet to pay all your monthly or repetitive bills such as mobile phone and electricity. Out of the total 62 non-bank entities that applied for the said license, only seven got the approval. Spice Digital is one of these non-bank entities to get the license and the rest being Oxigen, PayU India, Paytm, Euronet, TechProcess and BillDesk.  

 

BBPS is an integrated bill payment system that will offer interoperable bill payment services to customers online and offline. Once BBPS is implemented, customers will be able to pay all their bills at one place. To start with, this single bill payment platform will cover repetitive payments for everyday utility services such as electricity, water, gas, telephone and direct-to-home (DTH) television service. Gradually, the scope may be expanded to include other types of repetitive payments, like school and university fees and even municipal taxes.

 

To allow customers to use a single bill payment platform, the central bank has worked on a tiered structure. The platform will have two entities—Bharat Bill Payment Central Unit (BBPCU) and Bharat Bill Payment Operating Unit (BBPOU).

 

BBPCU is a central system that will connect all billers. In 2014, RBI had authorized the National Payments Corp. of India (NPCI) to act as a BBPCU for this project. NPCI is responsible for setting up operational, technical and business standards for the entire system and its participants, and also undertake clearing and settlement activities. Meanwhile, BBPOUs will be authorized operational entities for facilitating bill payments online and offline. These entities already offer bill payment service to customers, but do so is in isolation.

 

“We are quite pleased to be a part of elite selected group of seven non-banking companies chosen by RBI to operate under BBPS. Once BBPS will go live, customers no longer have to visit individual billing companies’ websites or physical outlets to pay bills. As of now, Spice Digital along with those companies that have received in-principle approval to join the single bill payment system have to submit system audit reports and obtain certification from NPCI to get final authorization to commence business,” said Saket Agarwal, CEO of Spice Digital.

 

The integrated bill payment system is expected to be interoperable, accessible to customers through a network of agents, allow multiple payment modes and provide instant confirmation of payments.