Online money transfer to become costlier

Online transfer of funds from bank accounts may soon become faster.

Online transfer of funds from bank accounts may soon become faster,but this could lead to higher charges for customers,as banks may have to pay the Reserve Bank a fee for this service from April 1.

The National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT),which allows bank customers to transfer funds electronically,has been a highly successful service ever since it was launched in late 2005. More than 60 lakh transactions are estimated to be taking place every month through this route.

In a circular to the chiefs of all the member-banks providing NEFT service,the RBI has asked the banks to take necessary measures to “strengthen the NEFT system in terms of availability,convenience,efficiency and speed” with effect from March 1.

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Among these measures,the apex bank has asked banks to extend the operating hours of NEFT system from 9 am to 7 pm on weekdays and from 9 am to 1 pm on Saturdays. Currently,NEFT is available from 9 am to 5 pm on weekdays and from 9 am to 12 noon on Saturdays.

The central bank has also asked banks to move to hourly settlement of NEFT transactions,as against current practice of six batches of settlements on weekdays and three on Saturdays.

However,the extension of timing and faster settlements could coincide with higher charges for such transactions.