ICICI Bank, India’s largest private sector bank, on Tuesday launched first digital Bank in the country, “Pockets’, on a mobile phone.
“Technology changed the way of life…… Technology changed the social life….. Technology changed the way we do banking,” said Chanda Kochhar, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of ICICI Bank while launching the product in Mumbai.
Anyone, including those who are not customers of ICICI Bank, can easily download the e-wallet from Google Playstore, fund it from any bank account in the country and start transacting immediately.
This wallet uses a virtual Visa card which enables the users to transact on any website or mobile application in India. Customers can also request for a physical card to use it at any retail outlet, ICICI Bank said
The wallet allows users to instantly send money to any e-mail id, mobile number, friends on Facebook and bank account. The users can pay bills, recharge mobiles, book movie tickets, order food, send physical and e-gifts, split and share expenses with friends by using this e-wallet.
The limit for transaction is of worth Rs. 10,000, if it is not linked to a savings account of the ICICI Bank.
Users can choose to add a zero-balance savings account to the wallet, which will allow them to earn interest on their idle money. The universal wallet and the savings account are the first two products to be launched as part of the ‘Pockets’ digital bank. These products come with a new youth centric look and feel.
“ICICI Bank is always ahead of others using technology,” said Ms. Kochhar, adding, “50 per cent of our transactions done on internet and mobile, 38 per cent on ATM and other channels.”
“This wallet can be created by anybody, a customer of the bank or not,” said Ms. Kochhar. According to her today’s youth wants everything instantly, on the go. ‘Pockets’ addresses this need by allowing anyone to open an account on their mobile phone in an instant and start transacting immediately.
“We believe that Pockets will help shape the future of digital payments in the country. We, at ICICI Bank, will continue to focus on innovations in technology to offer unique propositions that are simple, fast and convenient,” said Ms. Kochhar.
Existing ICICI Bank savings account customers can also register for the e-wallet by simply using their internet banking login credentials and authenticating the OTP sent to their registered mobile number. Users can conveniently load funds into ‘Pockets’ using any bank’s net banking or debit card.
ICICI Bank said that the wallet comes with best-in-class security features. It allows only one registration for a unique mobile number and requires mandatory authentication with user id and password for every login, among others.
