Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI

Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI

SUMMARY

Amazon Pay India’s whole time director Vikas Bansal said that the fintech is actively looking at offering credit lines on UPI rails to enhance user experience

Amazon Pay India’s operating revenue grew a meagre 4% YoY to INR 2,093 Cr in FY23, while loss narrowed 13% YoY to INR 1,499 Cr

The latest development comes barely two months after the RBI accorded authorisation to Amazon’s fintech arm to operate as a payments aggregator

Amazon Pay is working with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to roll out credit services to customers through the Unified Payments Interface (UPI).

Amazon Pay India’s whole time director Vikas Bansal told The Financial Express that the company is actively looking at offering credit lines on UPI rails to enhance user experience. 

“One of our stated objectives is to innovate in partnership with NPCI. Credit on UPI is one large initiative. So, we are very actively looking at that to see how we continue to enhance customer experience and value proposition,” Bansal said.

In June last year, the central bank extended the scope of UPI by allowing linking RuPay credit cards with the payments infrastructure. Subsequently, in September last year, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) also allowed scheduled commercial banks to offer credit lines to their customers over UPI rails. 

Simply put, credit on UPI is modelled after buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) products. It enables users to make payments using the credit line assigned by the bank without having the required balance in the linked accounts/wallets.

The latest development comes barely two months after the RBI accorded authorisation to Amazon’s fintech arm to operate as a payments aggregator (PA). Not just this, Amazon Pay also holds a prepaid payment instrument (PPI) licence, which was granted to the company back in 2017. 

Earlier this month, the RBI also proposed allowing linking PPIs like digital wallets through third-party UPI applications.

Amazon already offers instant credit through its BNPL product called Amazon Pay Later option, which enables customers to make purchases on its marketplace and pay later in monthly instalments.

As per the report, more than 100 Mn customers use Amazon Pay UPI for various transactions. The ecommerce major also claims that Amazon Pay has so far partnered with 8.5 Mn brick-and-mortar sellers and more than 10,000 online sellers.

While Amazon Pay received PA licence just this year, it has struck partnerships with a slew of financial institutions and fintechs to woo new customers and shore up its digital payments offerings. 

While the fintech platform has partnered RBL Bank for UPI payments, it has also tied up with ICICI Bank for FASTag recharges and launched a cobranded credit card. It has also collaborated with the likes of IDFC FIRST Bank, and Karur Vysya Bank to offer BNPL products and has reportedly clocked 9 Mn customer sign ups.

Amazon Pay’s plans to offer credit on UPI comes close on the heels of reports stating that several non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) and fintech startups urged the RBI to allow them to offer credit on UPI, either through credit cards or pre-approved credit lines.

The central bank is yet to take a call on the matter. As per a report, the RBI wants to ensure ‘credit on UPI’ works as a product offering before mass rollout to more players. 

Meanwhile, providing credit on UPI is also likely to help Amazon Pay increase its revenue. Amazon Pay India’s operating revenue reportedly grew a meagre 4% to INR 2,093 Cr in FY23 from INR 1,998 crore in the previous fiscal year. Meanwhile, loss narrowed 13% year-on-year to INR 1,499 Cr during the year under review. 

You have reached your limit of free stories
Become An Inc42 Plus Member

Become a Startup Insider in 2024 with Inc42 Plus. Join our exclusive community of 10,000+ founders, investors & operators and stay ahead in India’s startup & business economy.

2 YEAR PLAN
₹19999
₹7999
₹333/Month
UNLOCK 60% OFF
Cancel Anytime
1 YEAR PLAN
₹9999
₹4999
₹416/Month
UNLOCK 50% OFF
Cancel Anytime
Already A Member?
Discover Startups & Business Models

Unleash your potential by exploring unlimited articles, trackers, and playbooks. Identify the hottest startup deals, supercharge your innovation projects, and stay updated with expert curation.

Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI-Inc42 Media
How-To’s on Starting & Scaling Up

Empower yourself with comprehensive playbooks, expert analysis, and invaluable insights. Learn to validate ideas, acquire customers, secure funding, and navigate the journey to startup success.

Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI-Inc42 Media
Identify Trends & New Markets

Access 75+ in-depth reports on frontier industries. Gain exclusive market intelligence, understand market landscapes, and decode emerging trends to make informed decisions.

Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI-Inc42 Media
Track & Decode the Investment Landscape

Stay ahead with startup and funding trackers. Analyse investment strategies, profile successful investors, and keep track of upcoming funds, accelerators, and more.

Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI-Inc42 Media
Amazon Pay Eyes Roll Out Of Credit On UPI In Partnership With NPCI-Inc42 Media
You’re in Good company