The company will also create over 10,000 jobs across the country
PhonePe, India’s leading digital payments platform today announced that it will enable digital payments for over 25 million small merchants across India in the next one year. The company will also onboard these kiranas on its PhonePe for Business app, offering them end-to-end control of the payment process including instant payment confirmations, receipts and reconciliations. It plans to reach 5,500 talukas via its merchant acquisition team that will lead to over 10,000 jobs being created in semi urban and rural areas.
Despite the rapid penetration of digital payments, kiranas across India still rely on cash. Kirana owners have smartphones, data and the aspiration to adopt newer technology, but there are no services that match their aspirations. Kiranas are looking to acquire customers and forge deeper relationships with them. Customers on the other hand are looking for safety and convenience, while continuing to access their local trusted neighbourhood merchant.
PhonePe with its multiple offerings is all set to bridge this gap. It offers its merchant partners a personalized store page on the PhonePe app allowing them to list their store timings, share their product catalogue and promote home delivery options, thereby reaching out to a much wider customer base. Customers have the convenience of discovering local stores in their vicinity and connecting with the merchants using the call or chat feature to place their orders, and pay remotely via the stores tab on the PhonePe app. PhonePe is bringing these offerings to merchants in semi-urban and rural areas to help them digitize and grow their business.
Commenting on the announcement, Vivek Lohcheb, Vice President - Offline Business Development, PhonePe said, “Kiranas and merchants across small villages and towns are striving to progress and prosper. We are really excited to partner with them in this journey and take digital payments to the last mile of India across every village and town. This is also in line with our brand ethos of ''Karte Ja. Badhte Ja'' which reflects the role played by PhonePe in India’s progress, helping bridge the digital divide while empowering merchant partners across Bharat."
About PhonePe:
PhonePe is India’s leading digital payments platform with over 230 million registered users. Using PhonePe, users can send and receive money, recharge mobile, DTH, data cards, pay at stores, make utility payments, buy gold and make investments. PhonePe forayed into financial services in 2017 with the launch of digital gold providing users with a safe and convenient option to buy 24-karat gold securely on its platform. PhonePe has since launched Mutual funds and Insurance financial products like tax-saving funds, liquid funds, international travel insurance and Corona Care, a dedicated insurance product for the COVID-19 pandemic. PhonePe also launched its Switch platform in 2018, and today its customers can place orders on over 200 apps including Ola, Myntra, IRCTC, Goibibo, RedBus, Oyo etc. directly from within the PhonePe mobile app. PhonePe is accepted at over 11 million merchant outlets across 500 cities nationally.