COLOMBO, March 25 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lanka's Cabinet of Ministers has approved a proposal to remove transaction fees for both senders and recipients on QR-based payments below 5,000 rupees (16 U.S. dollars), a senior minister said Tuesday.

According to cabinet spokesman and health and mass media minister Nalinda Jayatissa, the decision aligns with the 2026 budget proposals aimed at modernizing the country's financial landscape and reducing its heavy reliance on physical cash.

The minister said the high volume of cash used in daily retail transactions remains a major bottleneck, limiting the growth of a transparent digital ecosystem.

Jayatissa said around 274,000 LankaQR transactions were recorded in the third quarter of 2025, with a total value of 1.18 billion rupees, averaging around 90,000 transactions per month. He said the average transaction value typically remains below 5,000 rupees.

He said the cabinet had decided to waive transaction fees on QR-based payments below this threshold to encourage more digital payments. (1 Sri Lankan rupee equals 0.0032 U.S. dollars) ■