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With the contraction in economic activities, digital payments in Nepal have taken a beating in the last fiscal year. While the expansion of retail digital payments remains stable, there was a reduction in the high-volume digital transactions primarily conducted through the Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS) during the fiscal year 2022/23.

According to Nepal Rastra Bank (NRB), overall digital payment has declined by 13.22 percent in 2022/23. The NRB data shows total digital payments amounted to Rs 51640.88bn in 2022/23 compared to Rs 59508.837bn in 2021/22. As high-volume transactions have declined, NRB said that the decline in RTGS has affected the overall digital payments in this fiscal.

The latest statistics of the NRB show RTGS payments plummeted by 18.61 percent in 2022/23. In the review period, the settlements amounted to Rs 34,289.977bn compared to Rs 42,134.018bn in 2021/22.

An RTGS is a funds transfer system in which the transfer of funds between one bank and another takes place in ‘real-time’ and on a ‘gross’—transaction by transaction basis. The NRB data shows RTGS transactions increased in the first three months of the current fiscal year, then started to decline gradually.

However, retail payments through wallets, QR codes, mobile banking, and ConnectIPS surged in the current fiscal year, according to NRB. The payment through ConnectIPS grew by 33.51 percent in the last fiscal year. According to NRB, payments worth Rs 4,114.628bn were made through ConnectIPS in 2022/23 compared to Rs 3,081.764bn in 2021/22. Similarly, mobile banking transactions surged by 80.64 percent to Rs 2,185.999bn in 2022/23 from Rs 1,210.134bn in 2021/22. There has been a whopping 159.67 percent growth in QR payments in the last fiscal year as Nepalis made payments totaling Rs 245.412bn.

Digital payments which were on an increasing trend till 2021/22, reversed in 2022/23. Bankers and experts point out the current economic slowdown for this. According to them, the spending capacity of consumers has been hard hit by rising inflation resulting in a decline in digital payments.

Guru Prasad Paudel, Chief of the Payment System Department at NRB, has said that the reduction in digital transactions reflects the economic activity’s contraction. “The decline in payments through RTGS has led to a decrease in overall digital transactions,” said Paudel.

There was a significant surge in digital transactions in Nepal in early 2020 following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. The lockdowns compelled individuals to remain indoors, leading to the swift adoption of digital payment methods and online shopping for daily necessities. This shift was supported by the growing utilization of smartphones, with e-commerce and point-of-sale (POS) transactions emerging as notable trends.

Post-pandemic, digital platforms including connectIPS, e-wallets, mobile banking, internet banking, QR codes, and bank cards are being used widely as customers can use these instruments in self-service mode.

The price of gold has increased by Rs 500 per tola in the domestic market on Thursday.

According to the Federation of Nepal Gold and Silver Dealers’ Association, the precious yellow metal is being traded at Rs 111, 100 per tola today. It was traded at Rs 110, 600 per tola on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, tejabi gold is being traded at Rs 110, 550 per tola. It was traded at Rs 110, 050 per tola.

Similarly, the silver is being traded at Rs 1,460 per tola today.

The business of hospitality companies listed on the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse), which has slowed down due to the Covid-19 pandemic, has bounced back strongly in the last fiscal year. The last quarter report of six hospitality companies listed in the Nepal Stock Exchange (Nepse) shows star hotels' revenue as well as profit, both increased in 2022/23.

With the Covid-19 pandemic slowing down, tourist arrivals in Nepal hit a three-year high in 2022 as the country welcomed 614,148 foreign visitors. The number of foreign visitors entering Nepal grew by 306.82 percent in 2022, putting an end to a two-year downward spiral that started in early 2020 when the coronavirus outbreak wreaked havoc across the world.

Along with the growth in the arrival of foreign tourists, the five-star hotels saw their business booming due to the surge in social events, and conventions. As of now, there are six hospitality companies listed in the Nepse, of which four are five-star hotels. Soaltee Hotel Limited, Taragaun Regency Hotels Ltd, Oriental Hotel Ltd, City Hotels Ltd, Chandragiri Hills Ltd, and Kalinchowk Darshan Ltd are listed in the Nepse.

Soaltee Hotel Limited posted a profit of 545.15m in the last fiscal year compared to a profit of Rs 297.24m in 2021/22. The country’s oldest five-star properties, Soaltee Hotel saw a 64.28 percent growth in its business in the last fiscal year. The hotel’s revenue rose to Rs 2.24bn in 2022/23 from Rs 1.36bn in 2021/22.

Orients Hotel Ltd which runs a five-star property Radisson recorded a profit of Rs 178.43m in FY 2022/23 compared to a loss of Rs 24.6m in 2021/22. Oriental Hotel also had robust revenue growth. The hotel’s income grew to Rs 1.09bn in 2022/23 from Rs 570.24m in 2021/22.

Taragaon Regency Hotels Limited, which operates the Hyatt Regency Hotel has done a profit of Rs 382.64m in 2022/23 compared to a profit of Rs 190.55m in 2021/22. Taragaon Regency Hotel’s revenue jumped by 99 percent in the last fiscal year as it recorded a business of Rs 1.38bn from Rs 692.62m in 2021/22.

Similarly, Chandragiri Hills, which operates a cable car and a five-star luxury resort in Kathmandu, has recorded a profit of Rs 151.16m in FY 2022/23 compared to a profit of 16.86m in 2021/22. Kalinchowk Darshan Ltd has made a profit of Rs 31.9m in the last fiscal year compared to a profit of Rs 14.84m in 2021/22.

However, City Hotel Ltd which runs Hyatt Place Hotel in Kathmandu recorded a loss of Rs 273.63m in 2022/23 compared to a loss of Rs 44.68m in FY 2021/22.

Chandragiri Hills General Manager (GM) Sanjeev Thapa said that the tourism business is increasing due to the healthy growth in tourist arrivals. “After the Covid-19 pandemic, the movement of local and foreign tourists is increasing in Nepal. As there have been no such ups and downs in the international market, foreign tourists’ arrival is also improving,” he said.

According to Thapa, Chandragiri Hills has been operating its cable car till 9.30 pm to facilitate tourists who want to experience the night view of Kathmandu “In addition to this, special packages have also been introduced which has helped the business flourish,” said Thapa.

With the easing of travel restrictions and China reponing outbound travel for its citizens, Nepali tourism entrepreneurs are pinning high hopes for 2023.

The number of tourist arrivals in the country has reached 534,207 in the first seven months of 2023. The tourist arrival has surged by 87.2 percent in the first seven months of 2023 compared to the same period in 2022.

While tourist arrivals have improved significantly compared to the last three years, the number is yet to touch the pre-Covid level. Nepal received 632,469 tourists in the first seven months of 2019. The arrival of foreigners in the first seven months of 2023 is 84.46 percent compared to the same period in 2019.

While the hotel sector is getting more visitors, their spending as well as average stay in Nepal has plummeted to a three-year low. According to the ‘Nepal Tourism Statistics-2022’ published by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Civil Aviation, the average stay of tourists has dropped to 13.1 days in 2022. The average length of stay in 2021 was 15.5 days, a ten-year high. With tourists shortening their stay in Nepal, their spending too declined in 2022. The average daily spending of tourists declined to $40 per day, down from $48 per day in 2021.

The Nepal Stock Exchange (NEPSE) gained 29.47 points to close at 2,045.45 points on Wednesday.

Similarly, the sensitive index surged by 4.30 points to close at 390. 28 points.

A total of 4,237,069-unit shares of 273 companies were traded for Rs 1. 51 billion.

Meanwhile, Kutheli Bukhari Small Hydropower Limited was the top gainer today, with its price surging by 9. 99 percent.

Likewise, Citizens Super 30 Mutual Fund was the top loser as its price fell by 7.42 percent.

At the end of the day, total market capitalization stood at Rs 3. 06 trillion.