Financial firms in last-minute rush to comply with Trai mandate on URLs

But most banks play down impact, say they do not send promotional links

Most banks indicate they may not be impacted by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India’s (Trai’s) mandate to block unregistered URLs and links, but financial institutions that send promotional messages are expected to face operational challenges.

These challenges include the need to whitelist every communication link, coordinate with telecom operators, and update systems to ensure seamless customer communication after registration.

Starting September 1, Trai has mandated telecom firms to block messages containing unregistered URLs, over-the-top (OTT) links, Android Application Package (APKs), or call-back numbers. Financial institutions and other entities that haven’t yet registered their content with operators will see