Kerala Financial Corp To Go Fully Digital From April 1, 2019

Kerala Financial Corporation (KFC), a leading state financial corporation, will go entirely digital from April 1 this year and hence no cash will be transacted at its counters from then on.

As part of this initiative, KFC has set up an online customer portal with features which match those offered by new-generation banks, an official spokesman said here. This would allow customers to register online and access their loan accounts for a status update and pay the dues online, he added.

Payments can be carried out either online or through ‘virtual accounts’ being set up from the new financial year (2019-20) beginning on April 1, 2019.

Giving a background, the spokesman said that the Reserve Bank of India has already banned cash settlements above ₹2 lakh. Most KFC customers complete these transactions through Real-Time Gross Settlement (RTGS). But this has often led to situations where KFC has has to spend time and effort to identify those who have paid their dues.

It is in this context that it has tied up with banks to launch virtual accounts. “The Federal Bank and the South Indian Bank are associating with the corporation in this effort,” the spokesman said, adding that this move would simplify transactions.

A customer may use his/her KFC loan account number as his account number to access the virtual account and complete the transaction with either the Federal Bank or the South Indian Bank. “Once the virtual account records the payment in this manner, details will be transferred to the KFC server and the loan account credited,” the spokesman said.