Visa Inc, too, complains about India backing local rival RuPay

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 28

Visa Inc has complained to the US government about India’s “informal and formal” promotion of the home-grown RuPay, according to a memo from the United States Trade Representative (USTR), accessed by Reuters.

Mastercard had raised issue in ’18

In 2018, Mastercard had complained to the US government that PM Modi was using nationalism to promote RuPay. This precipitated a warning from then US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, on “discriminatory behaviour” by India against American companies.

The USTR memo, likely prepared ahead of a meeting between USTR Katherine Tai and Visa executives, said the company remained concerned about India’s policies that appear to “favour the business of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI, which runs RuPay) over other domestic and foreign electronic payments companies”.

In this respect, it referred to PM Narendra Modi’s 2018 speech asking Indians to use RuPay as a patriotic duty. “Everyone cannot go to the border to protect the country. We can use the RuPay card to serve the nation.”

Visa’s grouse is a replay of Mastercard’s complaint to the US government in 2018 that PM Modi was using nationalism to promote RuPay. This precipitated a warning from then US Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, on “discriminatory behaviour” by India against American companies.

The RuPay payment system was established by the RBI in 2005. Today, it accounts for 63 per cent of transactions.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has also called on banks to promote Rupay cards. Visa Inc also flagged this aspect to the USTR by referring to “not so subtle pressure on banks to issue” RuPay cards, said the report.

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