Digital payments firm Paytm on Thursday night rolled back its decision to levy a 2% deposit fee on credit card users for adding money to their wallets, reported Moneycontrol. The company said the decision to suspend the deposit fee was taken after “keeping users’ convenience in mind”.
On Wednesday, Paytm had announced that it would levy this fee because people were reportedly misusing the firm’s “zero fee transfers” scheme to take money out of the wallet into their bank accounts. In the process, the users were earning “free” money in the form of reward points from the bank for using credit cards. The step was aimed at discouraging such transfers.
However, the e-wallet firm had also assured users it would return the money charged as deposit fee in the form of coupons that can be used on the website as well as third-party websites such as Swiggy or Uber.
However, after a huge outcry on social media against the move, the company decided to suspend it. “Keeping the millions of customers and merchants interest as utmost priority, we have decided to suspend the 2 percent fees and will continue to build a series of features to curb such misuse,” said the company.
Meanwhile, rival digital payment firm MobiKwik made it clear that it will continue to offer uploading money on the e-wallet free of cost. “In order to popularise the government’s vision of a cash-less society, we at MobiKwik have decided not to charge 2% on credit card recharges so that more people can transact online without having to worry about additional charges,” MobiKwik Founder and Chief Executive Officer Bipin Preet Singh said, according to NDTV.
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