The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has given a major boost to PhonePe ahead of Diwali by approving it as an online payment aggregator. This new status allows the fintech giant to collect and settle payments for shopkeepers and businesses directly, expanding beyond its previous role in online payments only.

What This Means for PhonePe

With the RBI nod, PhonePe can now focus on small and medium enterprises (SMEs), which were previously underserved in the digital payments ecosystem. Yuvraj Singh Shekhawat, Chief Business Officer of PhonePe’s Merchant Business, stated that the aggregator license positions PhonePe to provide better services, faster onboarding, and seamless payment experiences to merchants.

This move will also enhance PhonePe’s payment gateway services, enabling:

• Quick merchant onboarding: Businesses can register efficiently with KYC and verification.

• Easy integration: Developers can smoothly integrate the payment gateway into websites or apps.

• Multiple payment options: Customers can pay via credit/debit cards, UPI, net banking, or wallets like PhonePe and Google Pay.

• Efficient payment processing: Aggregators coordinate with banks and card networks, confirming successful payments or providing rejection reasons.

PhonePe at a Glance

Since its launch in 2016, PhonePe has grown to become one of India’s largest fintech companies:

• Over 650 million registered users

• 45 million merchants

• More than 360 million daily transactions

• Diverse offerings including payments, lending, insurance distribution, wealth products, hyperlocal e-commerce, and the Indus Appstore

By expanding into the aggregator space, PhonePe is set to strengthen its dominance in India’s booming digital payments sector, providing faster, more reliable, and versatile payment solutions to merchants and consumers alike.