The All India Mobile Retailers Association (AIMRA) has requested the finance ministry to waive off the dealer by down (DBD) and merchant discount rate (MDR) charges levied on retailers on paper finance and on digital transactions for at least 6 months post lockdown.
To this end AIMRA has written to the finance ministry, requesting it to ask Reserve Bank of India (RBI) or other respective authorities to direct NBFCs and banks to waive off these charges.
DBD is a fee paid by a merchant to banks and non-bank companies for providing zero-interest EMI payments facility. Meanwhile, MDR is paid by merchants to a bank via which a card payment has been made.
At present, retailers are required to pay DBD charges of 1.5 per cent to NBFC’s on financing mobiles and MDR commission of 1.5-3.5 per cent on different credit cards for digital transactions.
AIMRA is of the view that RBI and banks should absorb the cost of transactions as mobile retailers will take at least six-nine months to recover after the lockdown is lifted.
