Latest news with #UnifiedPaymentInterface
Mint
26-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
TPG-backed lending fintech firm Fibe gears up to join UPI services race
TPG-backed Fibe is gearing up to launch its own UPI (Unified Payment Interface) services app within the next three months, according to a top executive of the lending fintech firm. The move comes amid a wave of new entrants in the space, including and Navi, even as established players like PhonePe and Google Pay maintain their stranglehold over the market. Also Read: Using GPay, Paytm? 5 UPI payments safety tips and tricks. Read here 'We power nearly 8-10 other LSPs (loan service providers) in the market," Akshay Mehrotra, co-founder and CEO of Fibe. 'We've built a strong backend ecosystem, which is why our scale is so significant. Since we deeply understand lending and monetization, the idea is to explore doing one or two things directly in the payments space, starting with UPI." Mehrotra added that the company has received preliminary approval from NPCI, and will roll out a UPI payment feature after receiving the final license expected in the next three months. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), an organization established by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and Indian banks to facilitate digital payment services in the country, issues UPI licences. Also Read: UPI transactions to get faster with lower response time from June 16 Prashanth Ramdas, partner at Khaitan & Co., an expert in fintech and financial regulatory laws, said a growing number of existing and new-age players have received the Third-Party Application Provider (TPAP) licence, for companies to operate within the UPI ecosystem in India. 'Today, we have over 37 registered players, and the numbers have been growing over the past few years. From NPCI's standpoint, the intent hasn't been to limit access to the UPI ecosystem," said Ramdas. 'But at the same time, it does evaluate the potential customer base and business use case for awarding the licence." Positive about Fibe Fibe has close to 2 million monthly active users on its platform. Founded in 2015 by Mehrotra and Ashish Goyal, it offers both short- and long-term personal loans across segments like health, edtech and insurance financing, among others. In the last funding round, a $90 million round with participation from Hong Kong-based TR Capital, Trifecta Capital and Amara Partners, Fibe was valued at over $600 million. The company entered Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) products in the education and healthcare categories last year. The category now accounts for about 15% of the total revenue and will grow to 25-30% this year. Also Read: Buy Now, Pay Later: How BNPL influences your credit score For future incremental revenue, the company also plans to introduce two secured lending products. The first is a mass-market loan against mutual funds, starting at ₹15,000. The second is a residential rooftop solar loan, enabling households to install solar panels with net metering, offered with a 36-month zero-cost EMI option. To be sure, RBI has cracked down on Indian lending fintechs, especially those operating in the unsecured category. In November 2023, RBI directed banks and NBFCs to provision more capital against unsecured loans and moderate their exposure to riskier retail segments. RBI measures Hit by the crackdown, fintech lenders spent most of 2024 cleaning up their books, cutting back on risky loan portfolios, and pivoting toward co-lending and secured loan products like home loans. Mehrotra added that while the company is entering the secured lending space, it will primarily continue to focus on unsecured products, leveraging AI to enhance their security without the need for collateral. As for its initial public offering (IPO), the company is in wait-and-watch mode. 'I'd say we need to be prepared for an IPO, but unlike some of our peers, we're not under pressure to list early," Mehrotra said. 'For us, the next 24 months will be about staying IPO-ready. If the market is favourable, we'll consider it—but we're not in a rush." This comes as several mid-sized fintech firms—particularly those with valuations under $1 billion—are preparing to go public, despite volatile markets and mixed investor sentiment. As Mint reported over the past two months, firms such as Moneyview, KreditBee, Kissht, and Turtlemint are also in various stages of tapping the public markets.
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
ICICI Bank discontinues its PayLater credit line on UPI for all customers; The bank answers what happens with customers
ICICI Bank has announced its decision to discontinue its PayLater service from May 8, 2025. ICICI Bank PayLater is essentially the brand name for credit line on Unified Payment Interface (UPI) feature announced by the Reserve Bank of India in September 2023. This closure notice was given by ICICI Bank to its customers via a flash notification on its iMobile app and also publicly posted on its website. It is important to note this PayLater feature closure information especially if you have activated ICICI Bank PayLater for recurring payments like Netflix, etc since the bank said the payments won't be honoured once the feature is closed. Hence the reason why you should switch to an alternative payment option before ICICI Bank discontinues the PayLater feature. Read below to know more about what ICICI Bank said and what customers of the bank should do about it. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like New Container Houses India (Prices May Surprise You) Container House | Search ads Search Now Undo What did ICICI Bank say about PayLater (credit line on UPI? According to the public notice by ICICI Bank, here are the details: We would like to inform you that ICICI Bank has decided to discontinue the PayLater facility with effect from 8th May 2025 11:59 P.M. IST. Please repay the utilised/outstanding amount in your PayLater facility, on or before the Payment Due Date indicated in your Statement of Accounts generated for the relevant billing period. Any active Auto Pay transactions linked to your PayLater Account will not be honoured from the Decommissioning Time. If you have set up Auto Pay for essential payments, we recommend switching your payment method in advance, to avoid any service disruptions. ICICI Bank credit line on UPI Source: Live Events What should customers with ICICI Bank PayLater do? To help the customers deal with this closure information about PayLater, ICICI Bank has released some frequently asked questions (FAQ). FAQs: Q1. What is ICICI Bank PayLater facility? Answer: ICICI Bank PayLater is a Credit Line on UPI. Customers can check their offer eligibility under the 'Get Instant Loans/ Offers' section on iMobile Pay. Customers can also check the eligible offers through Net Banking in the 'Offers' section and avail the required offers. Q2. Why is ICICI Bank discontinuing the PayLater facility? Answers: ICICI Bank is discontinuing the PayLater facility as per its internal policy revisions from 8th May 2025 11:59 P.M. Q3. What will happen to my pending dues? Answer: All outstanding dues must be cleared as per the existing repayment schedule, either through Auto Debit or the iMobile app/Retail Internet Banking. Late payments will attract penalties, as per the PayLater Terms & Conditions. Post clearance of all the dues, the Bank will close your PayLater Account. Q4. What will happen to the Auto Pay transactions linked to my PayLater facility? Answer: All Auto Pay transactions linked to your PayLater Account will be disabled from 8th May 2025 11:59 P.M. IST Please update your payment method at the earliest, for uninterrupted services. Q5. Will this impact my credit score? Answer: There will be no impact on your credit score, if you clear all outstanding dues on time. Delayed payments may affect your credit history.
India.com
20-05-2025
- Business
- India.com
Masterstroke by Modi government as UPI users may get discounts on..., for every Rs 100, users will...
UPI payment- File image UPI discount offer: In a matter of great news for users who use Unified Payment Interface (UPI), the central government of India led by PM Modi can give a discount on payment done from UPI. As per a recent report, the Modi government is working on a scheme that will make payment through UPI cheaper than credit cards. Here are all the details you need to know about the recent offer on UPI payment. In order to understand the probable discount on UPI, readers must first understand that there is a fee of 2-3% on the payments made through credit cards, which is called Merchant Discount Rate (MDR). For an example, if the users pay Rs 100 to buy a product or service, the shopkeeper gets only Rs 97-98 due to the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) which is 2-3% on the payments. More notably, there is no fee on payment through UPI, and as a result, the shopkeeper gets the full payment of Rs 100. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs is considering doing something so that customers who make payments through UPI can get direct benefits. For example, if something is available for Rs 100 through a credit card, then the same thing can be purchased for Rs 98 through UPI. This will further promote UPI and customers will get the benefit of reward for digital payment. However, in the recent update, it has been reported that the Ministry of Consumer Affairs is considering a new scheme to promote UPI payments. Under the new scheme, it is expected that customers who make payments through UPI can get direct benefits. UPI QR codes record fastest growth in digital payments infrastructure In another significant update on UPI, UPI QR codes have recorded the fastest growth in digital payments infrastructure in the financial year 2024-25, with a 91.5 per cent jump over the previous financial year to 657.9 million, according to the latest RBI data. The surge in UPI QR codes was accompanied by a slowdown in the growth rate of credit card transactions to 7.94 per cent year-on-year, while debit card additions registered a mere 2.7 per cent growth to 991 million. (With inputs from agencies)
Time of India
13-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Karnataka HC rejects PhonePe's plea against information sharing
Bengaluru: The high court has rejected a petition by PhonePe Private Limited challenging a notice from Bengaluru cyber police seeking sharing of information."The duty to protect data must yield where public interest and criminal investigation intersect. The protection of consumer privacy cannot eclipse the lawful imperative of investigating officers to secure evidence and take investigation to its logical conclusion. Confidentiality must coexist with accountability," the court said. PhonePe had contested the notice issued on Dec 7, 2022, under Section 91 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC). The company argued against providing confidential transaction details of registered users without a complete investigation being conducted first. They claimed status as an intermediary under Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, stating that the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) was the actual owner of the Unified Payment Interface (UPI) company maintained it was merely a system provider governed by the Payment and Settlement Systems Act-2007. They argued that the Bankers Books Evidence Act- 1891, prohibited sharing confidential customer information, and noted that neither the company nor its employees were accused in the countered that they possess authority to request information for fair investigation of cyber crimes, citing the central govt guidelines under Section 87 of the IT Act. They alleged PhonePe violated guidelines by safeguarding merchants involved in cricket M Nagaprasanna, examining the case involving a complaint about Rs 6,150 lost through cricket betting applications, noted that CrPC Section 91 authorises summoning documents while acknowledging limitations under other court concluded that statutory safeguards cannot shield institutions from investigation when criminal activity is suspected, emphasising that modern cyber crimes require swift responses, allowing police to uncover digital evidence within legal boundaries while balancing privacy concerns with investigative necessities.
Time of India
09-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Chamarajanagar KSRTC crosses Rs 3.2 crore in UPI transactions
Mysuru: The introduction of a cashless payment system five months ago by Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) received a good response from passengers in KSRTC Chamarajanagar system, introduced to promote digital payments and reduce cash handling in the state-run buses, registered Rs 3.2 crore in payments through Unified Payment Interface (UPI) in five months since new payment system not only resolved the issues of exact change between passengers and conductors, but also eliminated the need for cash to commute on the Chamarajanagar KSRTC division, which includes Kollegal, Gundlupet, and Chamarajanagar sub-divisions, has a fleet of 429 buses. It also operates inter-state buses to Tamil Nadu and Kerala and inter-district facilitate digital payments, the division equipped its buses with advanced electronic ticketing machines (ETM) that accept UPI payments as well as debit and credit cashless payment system, which received a lukewarm response in the initial month of launching the scheme in Nov due to a lack of awareness, server glitches, and other technical problems, has now picked up gradually after passengers realised its division recorded cashless payments of Rs 7.9 lakh during Nov, which increased to Rs 46.3 lakh in Dec, Rs 77.5 lakh in Jan, and jumped to Rs 83.3 lakh in Feb, crossing Rs 1 crore in March the Intelligent Transport System, the division purchased 480 electronic ticketing machines. Operation Sindoor PM Modi meets NSA, chiefs of armed forces amid spike in tensions with Pak India's air defence systems shoot down Pak drones in J&K, Punjab & Rajasthan Several airports in India to be closed till May 15 - check list Passengers can purchase tickets by scanning the QR code available at ETMs with conductors using their mobile phone digital payment to TOI, Chamarajanagar KSRTC divisional controller Ashok Kumar said the introduction of the system helped both passengers and conductors. Digital payments became popular among citizens of the nation after the promotional measures initiated by govt, he was also a huge demand from passengers and conductors for the introduction of the same due to disputes arising out of tendering changes. Passengers can obtain tickets by scanning the QR code available with all conductors during travel. They can also purchase tickets using their debit/credit network, server, and technical glitches, if the tickets are not issued, passengers must pay cash and obtain a ticket during travel. "The introduction of digital payment has helped a lot for commuters like me during travel in state-run buses as there is no need for cash all the time," said Uma Mahadev, a passenger from Kollegala.
