Paytm sees Rupay credit card-on-UPI growing, eyes leading role

Mumbai: Paytm expects Rupay credit cards on QR to dominate the payment space in three to four years, with Paytm playing a leading role as a merchant acquirer, card issuer, and QR app.

"Rupay credit card is the most sought-after card today. This (credit card on UPI) is a killer use case. Most of the time, we think it is cashback or reward points, but I see a huge response to Rupay on UPI. The numbers are amazing, and it is one of the biggest differentiators among the cards to come out," said Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder and CEO of One97 Communications Limited (OCL), which owns the brand Paytm.

In April, the RBI allowed UPI apps to add credit card accounts as a payment option and use the same to pay by scanning QR codes, which were hitherto used for debiting bank accounts. Rupay is the only payment network that has signed up for this facility. This is primarily because low-value transactions on Rupay do not attract merchant fees, making it feasible on the UPI network. RBI has recently proposed allowing consumers to choose the payment network while applying for a card.

According to Bhavesh Gupta, President & COO of Paytm, his company has three roles when it comes to Rupay credit cards on UPI. "We have been working with NPCI to enable more and more merchants to accept Rupay credit cards on Paytm QR code and are arguably the biggest acquirer. We are also working with Paytm users to enable them to link their Rupay credit cards to UPI through the Paytm App, and there again we are leading the pack," said Gupta.

Paytm has recently signed up with SBI Card to issue co-branded Rupay credit cards. "We will have more partners coming into play to launch Rupay credit cards on the Paytm platform. We are very excited about the opportunity. It may look small, but if you look at this space three to four years from now, this space will be dominated by Rupay credit cards and QR codes because India needs a credit card that is accepted across millions of merchants," said Gupta.

Sharma and Gupta were speaking at the launch of two new 'sound boxes' by Paytm. The sound boxes, which are acceptance devices that provide verbal confirmation of the transaction, now double up as music players. Paytm has also launched a credit card-sized portable box with an extended battery that provides audio confirmation of payments. The new devices are available to existing Paytm merchants who can order them online. New to Paytm merchants will have to first complete their KYC and subsequently indent for a device.

Gupta said that Paytm was deploying around 1.1 lakh sound boxes every quarter. Paytm has nearly 80 lakh merchants who pay a subscription for monthly services, including devices like the soundbox or card swipe machine.


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