MUMBAI, October 16 — The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Friday promulgated mandatory regulatory guidelines directing all major credit card-issuing scheduled commercial banks and non-bank lenders to onboard onto the centralized 'Bharat Connect' (formerly the Bharat Bill Payment System - BBPS) interoperable network.
The supervisory directive enforces seamless, real-time bill presentation and instant settlement for credit card obligations and retail loan Equated Monthly Installments (EMIs). Customers can now view consolidated dues, execute repayments, and retrieve verified digital receipts across any enabled UPI client application or mobile banking portal without paying third-party convenience surcharges.
RBI payment system regulators underlined that routing credit settlements through the unified NBBL (NPCI Bharat BillPay Limited) clearing switch curtails systemic consumer friction, halts unauthorized third-party harvesting of sensitive credit card numbers, and fortifies payment settlement security.
The statutory foundation of payment systems under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act 2007, the operational architecture of Bharat Connect and the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) under NPCI, the RBI Payments Vision 2025, and Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) governance are core topics across UPSC Civil Services (GS-III: Indian Economy & Financial Inclusivity) and Banking / RBI Grade B examinations.