Digital push: India Post Payments Bank bags FinMin's 2024‑25 Digital Payments Award; tops DFS index among payments banks

India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) has won the Union Finance Ministry’s Digital Payments Award 2024‑25 for its role in widening access to cash‑lite transactions and driving financial inclusion across the country.

The trophy was presented in Delhi by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and MoS (Finance) Pankaj Chaudhary to IPPB MD & CEO R Viswesvaran and CGM G Rai Bansal. The recognition comes on the back of IPPB finishing No. 1 among all payments banks on the Department of Financial Services (DFS) performance index for FY 24‑25, after receiving a “special mention” last year, a government release said.

Launched in 2018 as a 100 per cent government‑owned arm of the Department of Posts, IPPB delivers paperless, cashless and presence‑less banking through nearly 2 lakh postmen and Gramin Dak Sevaks using smartphone‑biometric kits. Its network covers about 1.65 lakh post offices (of which 1.4 lakh are rural) and serves 11 crore customers in 5.6 lakh villages and towns.

“This award is a testimony to IPPB’s relentless efforts in making digital financial services accessible, inclusive and trusted,” Viswesvaran said, adding that the bank will “remain committed to empowering every Indian citizen through innovative and secure digital solutions.”

The DFS honour reinforces the bank’s mandate to bridge India’s urban‑rural divide in banking and support the Centre’s vision of a less‑cash, digitally empowered economy, the statement added.