Digital Payments: Enhancing Financial Market Infrastructures and Retail Transactions

India is one of the developing countries and had large volume of currency circulation in the country comparing with theother countries like Brazil, China, Kenya, Sweden, South Korea, Thailand etc.,. In the globe a side of many developing anddeveloped countries have been enjoying the benefits by creating highly technological infrastructure in their payment system, butother side India had been following traditional cash less methods like NACH, CTS and NETC etc., due to lack of low levels ofinitiations from the Governments till 2014. In the year 2015 Digital India Programme was launched by our Prime Minister ShriNarendra Modi with an intention of transforming India into Faceless, Paperless and Cashless. As a part of that, India is alsoinevitably updated their payment and settlement system from traditional system to new digital payment methods like AEPS, IMPS,UPI, BHIM, Mobile Wallets, and Banking Cards etc., The demonitisation decision inspite of providing various advantages likeCurbing the Black money, Transparency and controlling, low cost of currency printing and convenient mode, but also gaveconsiderable growth in digital payments were observed after demonitisation on 8th November 2016. Further Government of India,Reserve Bank of India and NPCI took several initiations and offers financial encouragement to consumers and merchants in order topromote digital transactions. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi as stated in the ‘Mann ki Baat’ 100 per cent cash less is notpossible, our intention is make less circulation of money in the society. In this article an attempt is made to brief understand theevolution of cashless economy, need to adopt cashless system, present status of important payment indicators, and initiations takenby the Government, Reserve Bank of India and NPCI towards encouraging cashless economy.