PhonePe launches payment gateway, targets MSME merchants

PhonePe launches own Payment Gateway

Fintech unicorn PhonePe on June 14 launched its payment gateway in an earnest attempt to serve MSME (Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises) merchants across the country.

"PhonePe is already a market leader in UPI with over 50% market share by value. The company’s ability to handle large-scale transactions and the strong consumer trust in the platform have translated into PhonePe launching its Payment Gateway business to provide the best-in-class payment experience to consumers and merchants alike," the leading fintech company said in a media statement.

Also Read: PhonePe leads digital monthly bill payments as volumes surge by 50% in one year

The space is presently dominated by Razorpay, Cashfree, CCAvenue, Pine Labs, and PayU. One97 Communications Limited, the parent company of Paytm, also launched its own payment gateway in 2012.

A payment gateway is a technology provided by third-party platforms that ensures the secure transfer of money from the customer's bank account to the merchant's payment portal.

"The PhonePe Payment Gateway is reliable and ensures 100 percent uptime for merchants and comes with industry-best success rates. It proactively detects downtimes and ensures stable success rates of transactions with real-time instrument health-tracking capability," it said.

Also Read: PhonePe launches account aggregator services, integrates with various banks

PhonePe recently announced the launch of its account aggregator (AA) services through its wholly-owned subsidiary PhonePe Technology Services Pvt Ltd (PTSPL), which will allow its Indian consumers to consent to and share all their financial data, such as bank statements, with regulated Financial Institutions.

"The PhonePe Payment Gateway is in compliance with RBI Laws to securely store customers' tokenized cards in the PhonePe Card Vault after taking consumer consent," the company statement mentioned.

While most payment gateways charge a standard transaction fee of 2 percent, the PhonePe Payment Gateway is presently running an offer for new merchants to onboard for free.