Latest Payments News: India Approves Incentive Scheme To Bolster Digital Payments At The Checkout, and more

Catch up on some of the stories our payments compliance analysts have covered lately, and stay up-to-date on the latest news.

India Approves Incentive Scheme To Bolster Digital Payments At The Checkout

The Indian government has approved an INR1,500 crore ($180m) incentive scheme to promote small-value, digital payments via the country’s wildly successful Unified Payments Interface (UPI) app.

Under the plan, the government will offer a 0.15 percent incentive on transactions up to INR2,000 ($24) made via UPI at small businesses.

Payments above this amount and those made to larger merchants will not receive incentives but will continue to have zero processing fees for merchants.

This move is part of India’s broader strategy to build a cashless economy, with a target of reaching INR20,000 crore ($2.4bn) in UPI transaction volume in the 2024-25 financial year.

It follows similar government support in previous years, with INR3,631 crore ($435m) in digital payment incentives disbursed in 2023-24.

According to the government, 80 percent of reimbursements to banks will be given upfront, while the remaining 20 percent will depend on banks maintaining high service reliability.

The conditions set by the government are that 10 percent “of the admitted claim will be provided only when the technical decline of the acquiring bank will be less than 0.75 percent”, while the “remaining 10 percent of the admitted claim will be provided only when the system uptime of the acquiring bank will be greater than 99.5 percent”.

UPI has become one of the world's largest digital payment networks, and its capabilities have become increasingly sought after by other economies, including the UK, the eurozone, and the United Arab Emirates.  

India’s government hopes that this initiative will spur more use of digital payments in smaller cities and rural areas, through both offline and phone-based UPI solutions.

Brunei Adopts National Payments QR Code Standard

The Brunei Darussalam Central Bank (BDCB) has issued a notice mandating the adoption of a National Quick Response (QR) Code Standard for payment transactions.

The directive, effective immediately, is intended to improve interoperability, while promoting digital payments across the Asian country.

Under the new regulations, all payment service providers (PSPs) and payment system operators (PSOs) must ensure that their QR codes comply with the national standard and merchants are required to display these standardised QR codes for transactions.

The BDCB has said that consumers will receive awareness initiatives on using the standardised codes.

To improve transparency, PSPs and PSOs are now required to notify users of unsuccessful payments caused by non-compliant QR codes, and to report their QR-enabled payment services to the BDCB before deployment.

Existing proprietary QR codes must be phased out by January 1, 2027.

Lithuania Flags Deficiencies In MiCA Licence Applications

The Bank of Lithuania has identified significant weaknesses in applications for crypto-asset service provider (CASP) licences, with most submissions failing to meet key requirements.

More than ten applications have been received so far, but the central bank has said that most were promptly returned for revision due to missing documents.

"We see significant interest from crypto-asset companies in Lithuania as a jurisdiction, and we are ready to ensure that the licensing process takes as little time as possible,” said Arūnas Raišutis, director of the Legal and Licensing Department of the Bank of Lithuania.

“However, we need to receive detailed information for the assessment," he continued.

According to the regulator, a key problem is failure to provide comprehensive and consistent information on shareholders and managers.

In addition, the regulator has said it is particularly focused on ensuring the suitability of applicants amid concerns about financial sector investments linked to Russia.

This comes after a recent national security assessment highlighted an increase in unsuccessful attempts by Russian-affiliated individuals to enter the Lithuanian financial market, potentially to bypass international sanctions.

Singapore Issues Multi-Agency Advisory On AI, Deepfake Scams

Authorities in Singapore have urged firms to introduce technology-based solutions to prevent the spread of AI-generated deepfake content that may be used to scam their employees.

Last week, the Singapore Police Force (SPF), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Cyber Security Agency of Singapore (CSA) issued a joint advisory on the new scam typology.

The three agencies said that scammers are using AI to create or manipulate digital content to produce deepfakes.

The advisory calls attention to the use of this technology to impersonate senior executives at companies where the target of the scam is employed.

Victims are sent unsolicited WhatsApp messages from scammers who claim to be their executive colleagues, and the victim is then asked to join a live Zoom call to discuss company business.

Victims are then shown a manipulated video in which their senior colleagues appear to instruct them to transfer funds out of corporate accounts, typically under the guise of project financing or investments.

The three agencies said the deepfake videos sometimes include representations of investors or regulatory staff, such as MAS officials.

Some victims are also asked to disclose personal information, such as their National Registration Identity Card (NRIC) number or passport details.

In a more advanced variant of the scam, victims are directed to a second deepfake video purporting to show a legal counsel from the company, who asks the victim to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) or receive a letter from the board.

In one case mentioned by the CSA, an employee of a multinational firm was tricked into sending $25m to scammers, after receiving a deepfake video that appeared to be his chief financial officer giving payment instructions.

Other known scams have used deepfake videos of Prime Minister Lawrence Wong and senior minister Lee Hsien Loong.

President Trump 'Illegally' Fires Two FTC Commissioners

Democrat lawmakers have called on the US Supreme Court to intervene following President Trump’s "unlawful" firing of two commissioners from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

The FTC is facing an uncertain future, following President Trump’s decision to fire two of its commissioners, both of whom are Democrats.

On Tuesday (March 18), Rebecca Slaughter and Alvaro Bedoya confirmed that they had received communications from President Trump informing them that they have been fired — a move that both say they will appeal.

Slaughter said the attempted dismissals violate the “plain language” of the FTC’s founding law, and violate Supreme Court precedent.

“The reason that the FTC can be so effective for the American people is because of its independence, and because its commissioners serve across political parties and ideologies,” she said.

“Removing opposition voices may not change what the Trump majority can do, but it does change whether they will have accountability when they do it.

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