For Chennai-based Vortex, solar ATMs are not just cash dispensing machines. They have helped the company grow their footprint in the banking sector, where ATMs have become an indispensable component. With banks aiming for a huge push into rural areas by firming up plans to open more branches, the solar ATM maker is in for a windfall as demand for solar ATMs is set to increase.

It is a no-brainer that operation cost is what prevents many of the banks to expand their services into rural services. Given the abysmal scenario of just 15,000-odd bank branches out of the total 70,000 branches, spread over 6 lakh villages, solar-based rural ATMs could be the magic bullet in serving the unserved rural population.

Vortex Engineering, an early-stage Chennai-based company, hit the headlines when biometeric-based Gramateller solar ATMs played an indispensable role in fast and impeccable disbursal of wages to the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) workers.

V Vijay Babu, CEO of Vortex, says, ?Solar-based ATMs in off-grid regions could be geared up to be a holistic banking kiosk performing basic banking functions like dispensing and receiving of cash without human interface of an account holder.?

Vortex has recently bagged 10,000 ATMs deployment project of Business Call to Action (BCTA) of United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Venture capitalists including Venture East, Avishakaar, Ray Stata (individual investor), Oasis Capital, Tata Capital Venture Fund own 85% stake in the company. The company is paying royalty to IIT Madras for the patents jointly developed by IIT and Vortex.

?There is no need to remember the pin number as biometeric authentication allows you to access your account. We have interactive voice over that instructs users how to insert the debit card and choose the right options to withdraw cash. NREGS wage disbursal was a great learning on how user adaption irrespective of their literacy status could help overcome technology divide in banking,? he says.

Underlining the low penetration of ATMs in rural areas, he adds that out of the total 65,000 ATMs over 85% are in top 20 cities and the remaining 10,000 in villages.

Solar ATMs are the only option that could be extended to function as a standalone branchless bank thereby achieving the objective of inclusive banking.

Two major challenges in standalone branchless banking is: How to incorporate cash acceptance; and acceptance of soiled notes.

?Cash acceptance is what we are currently working on. The challenges we face are soiled and counterfeit notes that cannot be shoved into ATM machines. In western countries, cash acceptance in ATM is prevalent as unsoiled notes are in circulation, but in India, and particularly in rural areas, it?s mostly old and soiled currencies that are in circulation. We are working with IIT Madras on how ATMs could accept such notes and screen counterfeit ones when they are stuffed into the machine. We are confident that we can incorporate these features for a fool-proof holistic ATM that suits the requirement of automated branchless banking in rural areas,? he adds.

The company is also keeping pace with technology on the fraud prevention front. ?Indigenous innovation is what we bank on. We are working on anti-skimming devices akin to conventional ATMs so that solar ATMs do not become an easy target ATM hackers,? Babu says.