2 consortia authorised to install more EDCs in shops
THE FINANCE MINISTRY has selected two groups to oversee a nationwide programme to install more electronic data capture (EDC) devices in shops to facilitate cashless payments with debit cards.
Finance Minister Apisak Tantivorawong yesterday chaired a signing ceremony authorising the two groups to install the EDC devices. One is the Taps Group consisting of Krungthai Bank, Bank of Ayudhya, TMB Bank, Siam Commercial Bank and Thanachart Bank. The other group is the E-Payment Consortium compris-|ing Bangkok Bank and Kasikornbank.
The fee for accepting payments with debit cards with the devices will be no more than 0.55 per cent of the amount paid.
The two groups plan to install EDC devices at about 560,000 shops nationwide; their ser-|vices started yesterday. The |installations are expected to be complete by the first quarter of next year.
The proliferation of EDC availability is aimed at encouraging Thais to purchase products through debit cards so as to reduce the costs borne by businesses from handling cash.
At present, Thais hold 54 million debit cards, while there are only about 400,000 EDC devices in shops. That is a fraction of the proportion of EDC devices in developed countries.
In the next phase, the EDC devices will be extended to facilitate other services including |welfare cards for low-income |earners.
After the EDC devices are installed, the government will encourage debit-card usage with a monthly reward campaign beginning in June. The budget for the one-year reward programme is Bt84 million. -
The government has implemented a measure to help merchants who install the EDC terminals deal with the merchant discount rate (MDR) charged by banks for providing debit- and credit-card services. The merchants will be allowed a tax deduction of double their MDR costs until December 31, 2021.
