SUMMARY
Paytm wants to bolster its payments and technology solution
Infinity is operating with over 700 buses
In September, Paytm committed $35 Mn towards its travel business
As digital payments company Paytm strengthens its ecosystem play, the parent company, One97 Communications, on Tuesday (December 3) announced a strategic investment of an undisclosed amount in Rajkot-based bus ticketing technology solutions provider Infinity Transoft Solutions.
Abhishek Rajan, senior vice president, Paytm said that this partnership will help the company bolster its payments and ticketing technology solutions for bus operators.
Founded in 2008 by Bhavesh Gadhethariya, Infinity is a travel focussed technology provider, which provides fleet operations and inventory management software and technology solutions to bus operators, cargo and logistics companies.
“With this investment, we will be able to rapidly develop travel-focussed tech products and expand our footprint pan-India. We aim to make bus operator profitable by using artificial intelligence, which will result in better operational efficiency and better facilities will be provided to passengers,” said Rajiv Dhamsania, Infinity cofounder and Director.
The company also offers live vehicle tracking through GPS, travel booking platform for offline agents and in-bus entertainment system through its proprietary MagicBox hardware and software solution.
The company claims that Magic Box is currently implemented in more than 700 buses in India across major bus operators including Prasanna Purple, Orange Travels, Patel Tours & Travels, Neeta Tours & Travel, Shrinath Travel & Transport Agency and Royal Cruiser. It claims to have a 45% market share with 10x business growth in the last five years.
Paytm started its travel business in 2014 and now claims to have sold over 100 Mn tickets in the last three years across rail, bus and flight bookings. The bus ticketing service started in 2015 and is offered across over 62K routes with integrations with over 2000 private bus operators.
In September 2019, Paytm announced its commitment to invest INR 250 Cr ($35 Mn) in its travel business over the next six months. The funds were to be used towards scaling up the product and technology team, set up new business verticals and grow the market share in existing travel verticals.
In the bus ticketing segment, Paytm competes with the likes of redBus, RailYatri. RailYatri recently expanded its train booking ops to include services such as intercity bus. Further, redBus claims to have sold more than 180 Mn bus tickets till date.
