The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on May 17 said the National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) service would not be available for 14 hours on May 23 due to technological advances.
On May 23, 2021, the development of NEFT technology, aimed at increasing efficiency and resilience, was planned after the business ended on May 22, 2021, the RBI said.
“Accordingly, the NEFT service will not be available from 00:01 hrs to 14:00 hrs on Sunday, May 23, 2021,” the central bank said.
The real-time gross settlement (RTGS) system will continue to operate during this period, the RBI said. A similar technical renewal of the RTGS was completed on April 18. Member banks are recommended to inform their customers to arrange for payment in due course.
NEFT is a comprehensive payment system nationally operated and operated by the RBI.
NEFT members will continue to receive event updates through the broadcast of the NEFT program, the bank said.
The RBI made NEFT available 24×7 from December 16, 2019. Until then, the NEFT payment system was available to customers from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on all working weekdays (except the second and fourth Saturdays, and all Sundays of the month).
The benefits of NEFT include daily availability of the clock, real-time transfer to the beneficiary’s account and safe living, pan-India coverage with a large branch network of all types of banks and no bank charges for savings customers with NEFT transfers.
In addition to money transfers, the NEFT system can be used for a variety of transactions including credit card payments to card issuing banks, EMI loan payments and internal cash transfers, among others.
