Extending it’s support to the rapid development of a vibrant cashless payments ecosystem, Sri Lanka’s leading private bank, HNB PLC, participated in the latest edition of the ‘Rata Purama LANKAQR’ campaign of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CBSL), held recently in Negombo.
HNB interacted with merchants, including small businesses, educating them on the advantages and strengths of its LANKAQR-integrated HNB SOLO payment app during the day-long event. Given the strong interest displayed by them, HNB representatives also onboarded a significant number of these merchants to the HNB SOLO platform.
The event held at the Kadolkale Grounds in Negombo was attended by CBSL Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal as the Chief Guest, together with CBSL Assistant Governor Dharmasiri Kumaratunga and senior officials from leading commercial banks.
The first to introduce multiple technological developments to the Sri Lankan banking sector, HNB has played a prominent role in increasing public awareness of the benefits of digital payments in the country. The bank has continued to amplify and ramp up these efforts, both through its own programmes and by extending its steadfast support to CBSL’s ‘Rata Purama LANKAQR’ initiative.
“A vibrant cashless payment ecosystem has the potential to drastically enhance economic activity at the grassroots of the Sri Lankan economy. These systems help accelerate the speed of business, and particularly for small businesses, they can help establish new markets and carry out transactions securely and conveniently,” HNB Head of Digital Business, Chammika Weerasinghe said.
Launched in late 2020, the ‘Rata Purama LANKAQR’ campaign seeks to increase the usage of Sri Lanka’s national common Quick Response (QR) code standard developed by the CBSL. This initiative, which eliminates the need for merchants to have multiple QR codes for different platforms, facilitates fast, secure and affordable digital payments, benefiting customers and merchants. Financial institutions and telecommunication companies are supporting the CBSL in its efforts to transition towards a cashless society.
HNB aims to make mobile phones and digital payments the standard for day-to-day transactions throughout the country and has played a prominent role in driving the country’s cashless QR-code based payments revolution.
HNB SOLO, launched in 2019, facilitates enhanced efficiency in payments and transactions, while eliminating the need for physical contact. QR-code based-payments through HNB SOLO are more cost-effective, when compared to alternative payment solutions available in the market. The intuitive, user-friendly and sophisticated app has significantly increased the convenience of making a wide range of QR-based payments. Users can make payments via LANKA QR by scanning the code using SOLO. Upon completion, merchants will receive an instant SMS notification, confirming the receipt of payment.
HNB has been continuously enhancing the app’s features and functionality, by further improving its user interface.
Going even further in its digital payments journey, the bank has also introduced Dynamic QR technology in partnership with both Keells Supermarkets and Singer, in which a unique code is generated for each transaction. This allows customers using an app linked with the LANKAQR to make contactless purchases at stores by simply scanning the Dynamic QR, which appears on the display screen of the Point of Sale (PoS) machine. By eliminating the need to manually enter the payment value, this mechanism increases customer convenience and avoids errors.
With 254 customer centres across the country, HNB is one of Sri Lanka’s largest, most technologically-innovative banks, having won local and global recognition for its efforts to drive forward a new paradigm in digital banking. HNB has a national rating of AA- (lka) by Fitch Ratings (Lanka) Ltd. The bank was also ranked among the World Top 1,000 Banks list compiled by the prestigious UK-based Banker Magazine for five consecutive years. HNB was also declared Best Sub-Custodian Bank in Sri Lanka at the Global Finance Awards 2020.