Maldives Mulls India’s RuPay Service Roll Out To Facilitate Payment In Rupees

SUMMARY

“We are currently engaged in discussions with India to explore avenues for facilitating payments in rupees,” the report quoted a Maldivian minister as saying

The minister further added that “addressing the dollar issue and reinforcing the MVR is a top priority for the current administration.”

In January, the relationship between the two countries worsened after Maldivian government officials, made “disparaging and unsavoury” references to Primer Minister Narendra Modi's then Lakshadweep visit

Amid tensions in their bilateral ties, Maldives is planning to roll out India’s Rupay service to “bolster the Maldivian Rufiyaa”. However, the launch date has not been declared yet.

The development was first reported by PTI.

RuPay, a product of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), is the first of its global card payment network in India, with wide acceptance at ATMs, POS devices, and e-commerce websites across India.

“We are currently engaged in discussions with India to explore avenues for facilitating payments in rupees,” the report quoted a Maldivian minister as saying.

Minister of Economic Development and Trade Mohamed Saeed spoke about the upcoming launch of India’s RuPay while announcing how both India and China have agreed to use local currency in bilateral trade.

The minister further added that “addressing the dollar issue and reinforcing the MVR is a top priority for the current administration.”

In January, the relationship between the two countries worsened after a Maldivian deputy minister, along with other cabinet members and government officials, made “disparaging and unsavoury” references to Primer Minister Narendra Modi’s then Lakshadweep visit and call to development of the Indian archipelago as a global retreat for beach tourism.

Following this, many startups took a pro-India stance and boycotted Maldives in some way or another. For instance, InsuranaceDekho suspended travel insurance to Maldives saying, “We stand united with our country and in solidarity.” Another traveltech major Easemytrip also announced the suspension of all flight bookings for Maldives.

On similar lines, traveltech startup MakeMyTrip launched a ‘Beaches of India’ campaign providing offers and discounts to encourage Indian travellers to explore “the country’s stunning beaches”.

This comes at the heart of India’s expansion of its RuPay and UPI offering globally with Sri Lanka, France, Mauritius, Bhutan, Nepal, the UAE and Canada among the companies to deploy the payment infrastructure in their countries.

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