PhonePe, BHIM app downloads soar 20-50% amid Paytm crisis

PhonePe has stepped up its marketing efforts, in a bid to attract both consumers and merchants to its products

As digital payments firm Paytm faces an existential crisis, its rivals PhonePe, BHIM and Google Pay are seeing a surge in app downloads, signalling that consumers are looking for alternative services.

PhonePe clocked 2.79 lakh Android downloads on February 3, registering a 45 percent increase week-on-week from 1.92 lakh Android downloads on January 27, as per data shared by app intelligence firm Appfigures to Moneycontrol.

For the four-day period of January 31-February 3, the Walmart-backed digital payments app saw a 24.1 percent increase in its Android downloads to 10.4 lakh, from 8.4 lakh downloads for the corresponding period in the prior week (Jan 24-Jan 27).

In recent days, PhonePe has stepped up its marketing efforts, in a bid to attract both consumers and merchants to its products. This has resulted in the company climbing to the top spot in the free apps category on Google Play Store and Apple App Store in India.

PhonePe's business-focused app PhonePe Business has also seen a significant jump in its app rankings, indicating the growing popularity of the application among merchants.

On Google Play, PhonePe Business rose from 188th position on January 31 to 33rd position in India on February 5 while on the App Store, the application rose from 227th position on January 31 to 72nd position on February 5.

Read: RBI deals body blow to Paytm with crippling restrictions on its payments bank

National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI)'s Bharat Interface for Money (BHIM) app also clocked 1.35 lakh Android downloads on February 3, a 21.5 percent increase week-on-week from 1.11 lakh Android downloads on January 27.

For the four-day period of January 31-February 3, BHIM app saw a 50 percent increase in its Android downloads to 5.93 lakh, from 3.97 lakh downloads for the corresponding period in the prior week (Jan 24-Jan 27).

That said, BHIM has witnessed strong growth since mid-January 2024 as evident by a major jump in its app rankings. BHIM has soared to 7th position on Google Play in India as on February 5 from 326th position on January 19. On the App Store, the app jumped to 40th position on February 5 from 171st position on January 19.

Google Pay has seen a more modest increase in its Android app downloads, with the company clocking 1.09 lakh downloads on February 3, a 4.9 percent increase week-on-week from 1.04 lakh downloads on January 27.

For the four-day period of January 31-February 3, the Google-backed digital payments app saw a 8.4 percent increase in its Android downloads to 3.95 lakh, from 3.64 lakh downloads for the corresponding period in the prior week (Jan 24-Jan 27).

These developments come after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) restricted Paytm Payments Bank from offering almost all major banking services, including taking deposits, FASTag, and credit transactions, from February 29, 2024.

Paytm saw its Android app downloads decline to 68,391 on February 3, a 24 percent decline week-on-week from 90,039 downloads on January 27. For the four-day period of January 31-February 3, the fintech major saw a nearly 5 percent decline in its Android downloads to 3.48 lakh, from 3.66 lakh downloads for the corresponding period in the prior week (Jan 24-Jan 27).

This has also resulted in Paytm's app rankings declining in the past week. Paytm currently stands at 40th position in the free apps category on Google Play Store in India as compared to 18th position on January 31. On the App Store, Paytm's ranking has dipped to 27th position from 15th position on January 31.

In a bid to reassure Paytm users, founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma recently said in a post on X (previously Twitter) that the app will "keep working beyond 29 February as usual"

Sharma said that Paytm is currently in talks with some of its banking partners to transfer the business of Paytm Payments Bank. However, at least half a dozen public and private sector bank executives Moneycontrol spoke with seemed hesitant to take up the business and are waiting for some regulatory direction before signing the deal.