Juspay Hives Off Namma Yatri & Other Mobility Apps Into New Entity Moving Tech

Digital payments startup Juspay hived off its ride-hailing subsidiary Namma Yatri and other mobility apps into a separate independent entity, Moving Tech Innovations, last year in November.

In a statement, Moving Tech Innovations’ Magizhan Selvan said that besides Namma Yatri, Juspay’s other mobility apps Mana Yatri, Yatri, and Yatri Sathi have also been brought under the umbrella of the new entity. 

The development was first reported by Moneycontrol.

The new entity is being headed by Juspay’s chief growth officer Shan MS and chief product officer Selvan. Both are fully transitioning to the newly-set-up entity currently.

Selvan said in the statement that the move has enabled Namma Yatri to become more agile and independent in the mobility sector. 

Explaining the rationale behind the hive off, he said that the distinct nature of the businesses led to the separation as they have different day-to-day operations, community engagement models, growth strategies, compliance requirements and stages of evolution.

“With continued support from Juspay, we’re poised to accelerate innovation and make a positive impact on the industry. Under the banner of Moving Tech Innovations Pvt Ltd, Namma Yatri is even more committed to empowering drivers through its zero commission, direct-to-driver approach. Currently, Namma Yatri collaborates with nearly 300,000 drivers across multiple cities, and our suite of apps has facilitated over 31 Mn trips, contributing to drivers’ earnings of nearly INR 500 Cr,” he added. 

Juspay currently holds a majority stake in the new entity for Namma Yatri, while software company Beckn, which also powers the backend of ONDC, and Bengaluru Autorickshaw Drivers Union (ARDU) are among the other shareholders.

Selvan said that Namma Yatri and Juspay will continue to collaborate in areas where there are synergies, leveraging each other’s strengths to enhance their offerings.

Notably, Moving Tech Innovations has also entered into an agreement with ARDU, under which Namma Yatri will work with the autorickshaw community in Bengaluru and tap in on their insights to co-build their offerings. 

Under the arrangement, ARDU’s general secretary D Rudramurthy and key officials Pattabhiraman, Naveen Kumar and Nagalakshmi will play key roles in the initial launch of the partnership as ‘Community Enablers’. 

“For the past three years, Namma Yatri has been deeply committed to participatory development, working with a diverse group of drivers to refine services and spur growth. We are dedicated to collaborating with all driver unions and associations that share our vision of uplifting drivers,” Selvan added.

It is pertinent to note that ARDU had parted ways with the platform in December 2023, citing it to be union-agnostic. On December 12, Rudramurthy issued a statement calling Namma Yatri “purely corporate-led” and expressed dissent with the company’s management.

Since then, the ride-hailing app has been on a rapid expansion spree on the back of ONDC. It entered Chennai and Delhi markets in January. The app claims to be already a prominent player in seven cities, including Bengaluru, Mysuru, and Kolkata. 

Last month, it also launched a new ride-hailing app Mana Yatri in Hyderabad. Similar to its main app, Mana Yatri is a part of ONDC and allows users to book autos as well as cabs. For drivers, it also offers a zero-commission model.

On the other hand, SoftBank-backed Juspay, founded in 2012 by Vimal Kumar and Ramanathan RV, is a full-stack digital payments software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform which offers payment gateway services.

Its operating revenue jumped 89% to INR 213.3 Cr in FY23 from INR 112.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Its net loss increased 4% to INR 105.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 101.5 Cr in FY22. 

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