Paytm, India’s largest mobile wallet company, is all set to launch its much-anticipated payment’s bank — Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) — on 23 May, company’s founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma said in an official statement on Wednesday (17 May). Renu Satti, who is currently a vice-president at Paytm, will head the payments bank operations.
The Paytm wallet will now move to payments bank. Paytm will also transfer its consumer base of 218 million mobile wallet users to PPBL. Customers who do not wish to join PPBL will have to notify the company before 23 May and the wallet balance will be transferred to the bank account after the details are shared.
In case of no activity in the wallet for six months, the amount will be transferred after the customer’s consent. PPBL will accept deposits from individuals and small traders up to Rs 100,000 per account.
Paytm had received the nod for payments bank in 2016 but had to delay it due to various regulatory roadblocks, which eventually helped Airtel become the first payments bank in India.
The finance minister had announced in his 2014 budget of plans to open niche banks to serve local areas and interests.
In 2015, the Reserve Bank of India awarded the payments bank licence to 11 companies including Paytm, Vodafone, Reliance Industries, National Securities Depository Ltd, Idea Cellular, Airtel, FINO Paytech and India Post, among others.
Paytm has already received Rs 218 crore of capital for PPBL from Sharma who owns a 51 per cent stake in the venture and the rest is owned by Alibaba-aided One97 Communications.
India’s financial technology market stands at an estimated $1.2 billion and is expected to double by 2020.
BW Reporters
The author is a correspondent with BW Businessworld with keen interest in HR and employee welfare.
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