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LankaQR onboard nearly 267 K merchants 

26 Oct 2021

  • CBSL launches nationwide promotional campaign to facilitate cashless economy 
The Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL) yesterday (25) noted that as of August 2021, 266,975 merchants have accepted LankaQR-based payments with over Rs. 392 million transactions being made. In 2020, 169,214 merchants accepted LankaQR-based payments with over Rs. 539 million transactions made.  The Nationwide Rollout Campaign of the LankaQR initiative was launched yesterday by the CBSL to facilitate greater financial inclusion and to foster a secure and competitive cashless economy.  This campaign was launched by Minister of Youth and Sports and State Minister of Digital Technology and Enterprise Development Namal Rajapaksa as the Chief Guest in the presence of Minister of Highways Johnston Fernando; State Minister of Aviation and Export Zones Development D.V. Chanaka; State Minister of Ornamental Fish, Inland Fish and Prawn Farming, Fishery Harbour Development, Multi-Day Fishing Activities, and Fish Exports Kanchana Wijesekera; CBSL Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal; and Inspector General of Police C.D. Wickramaratne. The LankaQR initiative was first introduced in 2018 by the CBSL and LankaClear (Pvt.) Ltd. and all local banks were mandated to use the LankaQR standard in 2020.  LankaQR enables customers to make payments directly from their bank accounts to accounts of merchants or service providers, using payment apps of LankaQR-certified institutions. It is a low-cost digital payment solution that targets small and medium enterprises especially.  Customers will not be charged for using LankaQR-based payments. Merchants are provided with the LankaQR-printed sticker free of charge by the member institutions of LankaQR to be displayed at their places of business. The maximum merchant discount rate (MDR – fees paid by merchants to the bank that issues the LankaQR code) will be 0.5% until the end of 2021. In addition, all payments for government services through LankaQR have been mandated to be free of charge.  Currently, there are 21 LankaQR-certified institutions, comprising 17 banks and four non-banks who together offer 24 mobile payment applications.  According to CBSL Director of Payments and Settlements Dharmasri Kumaratunge, although there are over 96,000 point of sale (POS) machines in the country, more than 60% of them are in the Western Province (Colombo 42.1%). The primary factor limiting the greater adoption of POS machines islandwide is the high price of a POS machine at around Rs. 50,000-70,000. Moreover, the MDR charged on POS machines per transaction is quite high at 2-3.5%. Therefore, POS machines are not a viable payment option for most small and medium-scale merchants.  Therefore, LankaQR will provide for greater financial inclusion and provide small and medium-scale merchants the opportunity to accept digital payments.

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Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Automobile, Mother and Baby Products, Clothing, and Fashion. Additionally, Kapruka offers unique online services like Money Remittance, Astrology, Medicine Delivery, and access to over 700 Top Brands. Also If you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.Send love straight to their heart this Valentine's with our thoughtful gifts!


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