Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) will be increasing their service charges per transaction from today as per an order by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).

According to the directive issued in June, customers will have to pay 1 rupee beyond the permissible fee transactions for cash as well as non-cash purposes, taking the total payable amount to Rs 21 instead of Rs 20, news agency ANI reported.

The customers will be eligible for five free transactions (inclusive of financial and non-financial transactions) every month from their own bank ATMs. These additional charges will only be imposed after the withdrawal limits by the commercial banks have been crossed. 

Also Read | UK bank accidentally hands out $175 million on Christmas day

Customers will also be eligible for free transactions (inclusive of financial and non-financial transactions) from other bank ATMs, which includes three transactions in metro centres and five transactions in non-metro centres.

The increasing cost of ATM deployment and expenses towards ATM maintenance incurred by banks or white-label ATM operators are a few reasons behind this decision, which will be implemented from January 1, RBI noted.

Ashwani Rana, Founder of Voice of Banking, said, “The increase of service charges per ATM transaction will be charged from the customers beyond a number of transactions permitted by the respective banks. This increase is only ₹1 plus Goods and Services Tax (GST), which is very nominal to customers against the maintenance charges paid by banks as earlier they were charging ₹20,” reported ANI.

Nipun Jain, Chief Executive Officer, RapiPay Fintech clarified, “Consumers withdrawing cash using our Micro ATMs and Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) will not be affected with the recent RBI guideline to increase ATM transactions charges (applicable after the customers exhaust the free monthly limit).”

“We believe this will boost the already growing demand for cash withdrawal through AEPS and Micro ATMs at our direct business outlets and help us in achieving our goal of growing financial inclusion in deeper geographies and far-flung areas like North East, Kashmir, Ladakh, and Uttrakhand. We have sold over one lakh Micro ATMs since we began operations last year. Our average ticket size of withdrawal has climbed from ₹3500 to ₹3800, with a CAGR growth of 25 per cent in Micro ATMs in the last one year,” Jain added. 

(With inputs from ANI)