PhonePe
Type of business | Private |
---|---|
Type of site | Digital payments & Financial services |
Available in | Multilingual (11) |
Founded | 2015 |
Headquarters | Salarpuria Softzone, Bengaluru, Karnataka, |
Area served | India |
Founder(s) |
|
Industry | Fintech, Financial services, Payment gateway |
Services | |
Revenue | ₹2,914 crore (US$350 million) (2023)[3] |
Parent | Walmart |
URL | phonepe.com |
Commercial | Yes |
Registration | Required |
Users | 500 million[4] |
Current status | Active |
Native client(s) on | Android iOS |
PhonePe is an Indian digital payments and financial services company headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.[5][6] It was founded in December 2015,[7][2] by Sameer Nigam, Rahul Chari and Burzin Engineer.[8] The PhonePe app, based on the Unified Payments Interface, went live in August 2016.[9][10]
The PhonePe app is accessible in 11 Indian languages.[11] It enables users to perform various financial transactions such as sending and receiving money, recharging mobile and DTH, making utility payments, conducting in-store payments.[12][13]
History
PhonePe was incorporated in December 2015.[14] In April 2016, the company was acquired by Flipkart[15][16] and as part of the acquisition, the FxMart license was transferred to PhonePe and rebranded as the PhonePe wallet. PhonePe's co-founder Sameer Nigam was appointed as the CEO of the company.[17]
In August 2016, the company partnered with Yes Bank to launch a UPI-based mobile payment app, based on the government-backed UPI platform.[18]
In 2022, they were launching international UPI payments, allowing Indian users traveling abroad to pay foreign merchants with Unified Payments Interface (UPI).[19][20]
In 2022, PhonePe obtained licensing from the Reserve Bank of India for operating a Semi-Closed Prepaid Payment system.[21]
Ownership and funding
In December 2020, Flipkart and PhonePe declared a partial split, with Walmart maintaining its majority ownership in PhonePe and the two entities now functioning independently.[22]
PhonePe announced the acquisition of $350 million from General Atlantic, a US growth equity firm, at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion.[23] Subsequently, another $100 million was attained in primary capital in February 2023 from Ribbit Capital, Tiger Global, and TVS Capital Funds, followed by $200 million in primary capital from Walmart, and another $100 million from General Atlantic at the same valuation. This brings the total amount of funding raised by PhonePe to $850 million.[24][25]
Awards and recognition
- In 2018: Won the UPI Digital Innovation Award from NPCI in 2018.[26]
- India Advertising Awards 2018 in the Telecom and Technology category[27]
Legal challenges
On 14 January 2017, ICICI bank blocked PhonePe transactions, citing the reasons that it did not meet the NPCI guidelines.[28][29] Initially, on 19 January 2017, NPCI instructed ICICI to allow UPI transactions via PhonePe.[30] During this period, Airtel too blocked PhonePe transactions on its platforms.[31] A day later, on 20 January 2017, NPCI renounced the previous instructions citing the reason that PhonePe indeed violated the UPI norms.[32][33][34]
After this, PhonePe closed its operations on Flipkart's website,[35] to align itself with the terms stated in the updated verdict from NPCI. By February 2017, PhonePe resolved the issues with ICICI and Airtel.[36]
ESOP
PhonePe allots employee stock options (ESOPs) to its full-time employees.[37] In November 2021, PhonePe was reported to have conducted a buyback of ESOPs worth ₹1.35 billion (US$16 million), covering 75% of its current workforce who have completed at least a year of service.[38]
See also
- E-commerce payment system
- Mobile payment
- Digital wallet
- List of online payment service providers
- Payment gateway
References
- ^ "Contact Us". PhonePe, Pvt Ltd. 15 March 2015. Archived from the original on 3 May 2020. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
- ^ a b "Tech in Asia - Connecting Asia's startup ecosystem". Tech in Asia. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ "PhonePe revenue jumps 77% to Rs 2914 crore in FY23". Livemint.
- ^ "PhonePe crosses 500 million registered users, alters top deck". The Economic Times. 7 November 2023. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
- ^ Singh, Abhinav (10 March 2020). "Why digital payment firms should not rely on single bank". The Week. Archived from the original on 29 November 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ "Top ten Indian Fintech unicorns - ET BFSI". ETBFSI.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
- ^ "IBLA 2023: Walmart-backed PhonePe is this edition's 'Young Turk of The Year' - CNBC TV18". CNBCTV18. 2 December 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ Chanchani, Madhav (4 April 2016). "Flipkart acquires former executive's startup PhonePe for payments push". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ Sen, Anirban (10 January 2017). "Flipkart's PhonePe crosses 10 million downloads on Google Play Store". Mint. Archived from the original on 27 November 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ "PhonePe offers guaranteed cashback on gold, silver: Here are details". The Times of India. 29 October 2021. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ "5 digital payment platforms you can use during Coronavirus Lockdown". India Today. 20 April 2020. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
- ^ "PhonePe launches silver investments; allows users to buy silver coins and bars". cnbctv18.com. 30 September 2021. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 29 January 2022.
- ^ Dasgupta, Brinda (23 March 2018). "Payments platform PhonePe looks to double its team". The Times Of India. Archived from the original on 30 November 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ "Flipkart : India's most preferred online shopping store". The Indian Wire. 3 July 2018. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
- ^ "Flipkart acquires mobile payments firm PhonePe". BusinessLine. 1 April 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ "Flipkart acquires former executive's startup PhonePe for payments push". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ Raj, Ritik. "Meet man who once worked at Flipkart, now runs Rs 99400 crore company, he is…". DNA India. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ Sahay, Priyanka. "Flipkart's PhonePe ties up with Yes Bank to launch UPI-based app". Live Mint.
- ^ "Walmart-owned PhonePe to enable UPI activation on Aadhaar-based OTP". Business Standard. 9 November 2022. Archived from the original on 31 March 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
- ^ "PhonePe allows cross-border UPI payments in UAE, Singapore". The Hindu. 7 February 2023. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 7 November 2024.
- ^ "Reserve Bank of India - Publications". rbi.org.in. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ Singh, Manish (23 December 2022). "Flipkart and PhonePe complete separation". TechCrunch. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
- ^ Rawat, Aman (19 January 2023). "PhonePe raises $350 mn from General Atlantic at $12 bn valuation". mint. Archived from the original on 19 April 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
- ^ "PhonePe raises $100 million in additional funding". Financialexpress. 15 February 2023. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
- ^ "PhonePe gets another $100 million from General Atlantic; total funding rises to $850 million". The Economic Times. 23 May 2023. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
- ^ Kannan, Uma (6 August 2018). "PhonePe eyes top slot in digital payments". Deccan Herald. Archived from the original on 27 November 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
- ^ "MullenLowe Lintas Group and Ogilvy dominate the IndIAA Awards". Campaign India. 31 August 2018. Retrieved 19 April 2024.
- ^ Sen, Anirban (14 January 2017). "ICICI blocks PhonePe transactions in sign of banks moving to protect payments turf". Mint. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ Peermohamed, Alnoor (16 January 2017). "ICICI Bank blocks transactions through Flipkart wallet PhonePe". Business Standard. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ "NPCI instructs ICICI to allow UPI transactions on PhonePe immediately". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ "After ICICI Bank, Airtel also blocks PhonePe - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ "NPCI says Flipkart's PhonePe does not follow UPI rules - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ IANS (21 January 2017). "PhonePe app in breach of UPI guidelines: NPCI". Business Standard. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ PTI (20 January 2017). "PhonePe in violation of UPI norms, says NPCI in U-turn". Mint. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ Nair, Vishwanath (21 January 2017). "PhonePe stops all UPI-based payments on Flipkart website". Mint. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ "ICICI Bank resumes UPI transactions on PhonePe - The Economic Times". The Economic Times. Archived from the original on 25 December 2018. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
- ^ Abrar, Peerzada (4 February 2021). "PhonePe distributes ESOPs worth Rs 1,500 crore among all employees". Business Standard India. Archived from the original on 6 February 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ "PhonePe announces ₹135 cr ESOPs buyback programme from employees this year". Live Mint.
External links
- Electronic funds transfer
- Payment systems
- Flipkart acquisitions
- Companies based in Bengaluru
- Financial services companies established in 2015
- E-commerce in India
- Indian brands
- Internet properties established in 2015
- Mobile payments in India
- Online payments
- Payment service providers
- Privately held companies of India
- Financial services companies of India
- 2015 establishments in Karnataka