SBI to waive MDR charges on debit card transactions for small merchants

The country's largest lender State Bank of India (SBI) on Monday announced its decision to completely waive the Merchant Discount Rates (MDR) charges on debit card transactions for all the small merchants having annual turnover of up to Rs. 20 lakh, for a period of one year i.e. up to December 31, 2017.

However, the move is targeted primarily towards a segment of population and small merchants, who have not yet experienced the convenience of 'card payments'.

With the recent move, the bank intends to actively canvass the smaller merchants to its motto of being a "Banker to every Indian".

It believes that this gesture would go a long way in changing the perception towards the cost of using digital channels and supplement the Government's 'Cashless India Drive'.

Yesterday here, the bank announced slashing its Marginal Cost of Funds Based Lending Rate (MCLR) by a whopping 90 basis points.