Cash deposit machine serves account holders of any bank

Life Tel Communication, a Chennai, India-based startup, has launched a cash deposit machine that accepts cash from any bank account holder, regardless of their home bank.

According to a report by The Hindu Business Line, the cash deposit machine solves a common problem in rural areas where account holders might not have a branch of their home bank nearby. The machine saves these customers the time and cost of traveling to their home bank to make a deposit.

According to Life Tel, the machine accepts individual cash deposits up to 49,900 rupees ($716). The user is charged a fee of 20 rupees (29 cents) for every 5,000 rupees deposited. 

CDM fees can be significantly less than those fees of private banks, which charge nonbank depositors 100 rupees plus tax for a deposit. State Bank of India charges noncustomers 25 rupees per deposit, according to the report.

The machine is currently undergoing pilot testing in the cities of Chennai and Coimbatore. Life Tel said the response has so far been positive. The company is currently developing an that will allow a deployer to keep track of deposit volume and the number of notes in each machine.

Life Tel is in talks with banks about deploying the machine, the report said.