HNB brings in over 1,500 merchants in Galle for CB’s LANKAQR rollout

Further supporting a cashless payment ecosystem, HNB PLC, supported the LANKAQR initiative of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka (CB) with the on-boarding of over 1,500 merchants in the Galle district recently. 

The promotional event hosted by HNB at the Galle Fort Magistrate Court Square was the fourth phase of the 'Rata Purama LANKAQR' campaign launched by the CB last year. The extensive promotional campaign, a collaborative effort by the CB and 21 financial institutions and telecommunication partners, aims to create awareness regarding cashless payments via QR codes, the bank said in a media release. 

"LANKAQR, the latest innovation in the financial sector, has higher traction than any previous initiatives or technologies. The fact that it coincides with an important time in our lives, when we need to continue transactions as normal as possible while exercising social distancing and other hygiene requirements to keep the pandemic at bay, is indeed a silver lining in an otherwise dark grey cloud looming over the whole world. The staggering statistic of on-boarding 190,000 merchants so far is by no means a small number, given that financial institutions were only able to bring in under 100,000 merchants to use POS machines for card payments. Today, there are more people with mobile phones than cards, and even though this mode of payment will continue to evolve, so will the integration of cards to mobile phones, establishing one consistent application of payment for all in the future," said HNB Managing Director and CEO, Jonathan Alles.

Following the ceremony, several merchants in Galle were presented with the LANKAQR code to conduct transactions by the CB Director. Teams from HNB customer centres in the region were also on-site to help raise awareness among merchants in the area on the potential of cashless and contactless payment options available via HNB SOLO.