PNB
in cross border ATM sharing arrangement with
Nepal's Everest bank
4
January 2007
Mumbai:
Punjab National Bank, India (PNB) and Everest Bank
Ltd. (EBL), Nepal have recently agreed to share their
ATMs network for their cardholders on either side of
the border. Chennai-based Financial Software and Systems
(P) Ltd. (FSS), a leader in the electronic payment systems
and services arena, has provided the cross-country ATM
sharing solution through its FSSNeT, the outsourcing
division of FSS.
This
is the first time in India, that an Indian bank would
use domestic network for transaction sharing with a
foreign bank and an important customer service facility
for PNB, which has around 870 ATMs.
In Nepal, EBL has outsourced its ATM transaction processing
services to Smart Choice Technology (SCT). FSSNeT has
tied up with SCT, and has established a data communication
network connecting the two networks. Thus both banks'
cardholders can avail of ATM services amongst both banks'
ATMs.
PNB
would be the settlement bank, to whom FSS would provide
settlement reports, with appropriate currency conversion.
With FSSNet tying up with SCT, PNB now has opportunities
to tie up with other Nepali banks in SCT's network for
ATM sharing.
"For the first time in the history of payment systems
in India, two banks across two countries are connecting
to each other through domestic networks, bypassing the
need to go through international interchanges, resulting
in lower cost of services for both banks and their customers,:
says Nagaraj Mylandla, managing director, FSS. We believe
this would pave the way forward for enabling transaction
sharing services amongst neighbouring countries including
Sri Lanka, Bhutan, and Middle East countries"
According to K S Bajwa, general manager, Punjab National
Bank, says " Our bank's tie up with Everest Bank
Ltd for ATM sharing is an important milestone in our
Retail Banking initiatives, besides improvement in the
cross border payment and settlement mechanisms between
India and Nepal. Our Customers would now have ready
access to their accounts on any of Everest Bank's ATM
in Nepal and vice versa, at relatively low transaction
cost. This being our first bilateral cross border ATM
sharing arrangement, we look forward to tying up with
various leading banks in our neighbouring countries."
Punjab National Bank is India's largest nationalised
bank (State Bank Of India is owned jointly by the Reserve
Bank and the government of India and ence, has never
been nationalised) in techno-banking.
Earlier
in 2001, FSS had implemented the BASE24 'switch' solution
for PNB providing online ATM facility. For FSS this
also heralds an opportunity to help Indian bank networks
in neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka, Bhutan and
the Middle East to offer a cost effective solution for
transaction sharing with their counter parts in these
countries.
FSS is a leading player in online payment systems and
services, providing online, real-time, electronic transaction
processing and switching for financial and non-financial
transactions across multiple delivery channels and payment
systems and co-networks. FSSNeT, the outsourcing wing
of FSS, provides switching, 
authorization,
and back office services to over 22 major banks and
financial institutions in India. FSSNeT services include
ATM and POS deployment and management, ATM sharing amongst
banks, international and domestic interchanges connectivity,
Mobile Topups and electronic bill payment and shared
payment gateway.
Other
reports on Punjab National Bank
General
reports on banks
More
IT news
