150+ digital
channels.
35 lakh+
physical outlets.

Yes. A Biller Operating Unit may delist a Biller on valid and justifiable grounds like a breach of Bharat Connect system guidelines, an agreement failure between the BOU & the Biller or the Biller declaring bankruptcy or indulging in fraudulent practices that compromise or jeopardise the ecosystem. The Biller Operating Unit is expected to send a formal intimation to the Bharat Connect Central Unit within 30 days of the event necessitating delisting.

Yes. A Biller can change their default Biller Operating Unit for valid reasons after giving a 60-day notice period to the existing default Biller Operating Unit and Customer Operating Unit. On being satisfied with the reasons, the Bharat Connect Central Unit will carry out the change and advise the system participants.

Bharat Connect offers up to 8 settlement cycles per day. Note that the exact duration for the settlement depends upon the Operating Unit and varies according to the category.

Billers have to share bill information at regular intervals, work with their Operating Units to resolve complaints and disputes, reconcile the funds remitted by the Operating Units regularly and process refund requests.

Biller Operating Units have to onboard Billers, carry out the settlement of funds on behalf of Billers, handle messages and alerts to fetch bills, process payments, and manage complaints and disputes.

Billers are service providers who collect payments from customers/consumers and participate in Bharat Connect through BCOUs. The scope of Bharat Connect includes all categories of Billers who raise bills or as decided by NBBL from time to time.

MDM is Master Data Management. There are two types of MDM - Biller MDM and Plan MDM.

The settlement bank of the Billers is also known as the Biller bank.

1. Set up bill payment standards for the entire system and its participants in India.

2. An efficient and convenient medium for customers and other stakeholders.

3. A number of value-added services relating to bill payments can be offered to consumers by the BCOUs in due course of time, subject to strict compliance with data privacy and security issue standards. This significantly reduces systemic risks in collection and settlements.

4. Reduce the expenditure that Billers incur on collection of bills at their collection centres.

5. Lead to faster migration from assisted mode to self-service mode of payment and from cash payments to e-payment of bills.

6. Facilitate e-presentation of bills and quick e-payment of bills.

7. Entry barriers for the small Billers and Billers with restricted geographic presence can be significantly reduced.

8. Greater competition among the participants in the system benefits the consumers.

9. Bharat Connect has active fraud monitoring and risk mitigation systems in place.

10. An effective, efficient and centralised mechanism for handling customer complaints and grievances with committed SLAs for resolution.

1. Set up bill payment standards for the entire system and its participants in India.

2. An efficient and convenient medium for customers and other stakeholders.

3. A number of value-added services relating to bill payments can be offered to consumers by the BCOUs in due course of time, subject to strict compliance with data privacy and security issues standards. This significantly reduces systemic risks in collection and settlements.

4. Reduce the expenditure that Billers incur on collection of bills at their own collection centres.

5. Lead to faster migration from assisted mode to self-service mode of payment and from cash payments to e-payment of bills.

6. Facilitate e-presentation of bills and quick e-payment of bills.

7. Entry barriers for the small Billers and Billers with restricted geographic presence can be significantly reduced.

8. Greater competition among the participants in the system benefits the consumers.

9. Bharat Connect has active fraud monitoring and risk mitigation systems in place.

10. An effective, efficient and centralised mechanism for handling customer complaints and grievances with committed SLAs for resolution.

1. Billers will be onboarded in Bharat Connect by three BCOUs only (also referred to as BOUs).

2. BCOUs will send a formal request for approval to the Bharat Connect Central Unit for the addition of a new Biller’s name. The Biller BCOU must submit the Biller consent letter within 7 days of its receipt from the Biller. The Biller will be onboarded after the completion of all formalities and compliance with the standards set by the Bharat Connect Central Unit for onboarding of Billers. The Bharat Connect Central Unit shall issue a unique ID for each Biller.

3. The Biller activation has to be completed by the BOUs within 60 calendar days or as per the guidelines specified by the Bharat Connect Central Unit from time to time on receipt of the consent letter from the Billers for confirmation of their participation.

4. In case the integration/activation of Biller is expected to be delayed beyond 60 days, BOUs should proactively intimate the Bharat Connect Central Unit and the Biller.

5. Integration not completed beyond 60 calendar days would be reviewed on a case-to-case basis wherein the Bharat Connect Central Unit will have the discretion to either retain or disallow the BOU. The same information will be updated to all system participants through a Biller Master Data Management file (Biller MDM file) post-Bharat Connect Central Unit approval.

6. MDM refresh and onboarding of new Billers on the front-end, in the existing categories should not exceed 14 days from the date of issue of the MDM.

7. MDM refresh and onboarding of new Billers on the front-end, in the new categories should not exceed 60 days from the date of issue of the MDM.

8. COUs and Agent Institutions must render all Billers on their front-end channels for their customers that have been onboarded in Bharat Connect across all categories. Selective rendering of Billers is a violation of Bharat Connect guidelines and the Bharat Connect Central Unit reserves the right to take legal action against the relevant COU or Agent Institutions including by way of issuance of a non-compliance letter or penalty levied at the discretion of the Bharat Connect Central Unit.