Digital Payment Startups: The Heart & Soul of Digital Transaction Metamorphosis
Amidst all the booms in the financial eco-system, the soar & soar of digital adoption of cashless transaction in India is something everyone merry about. Forced by pandemic, India is observing a superfast adoption of digital payments and undergoing extreme cashless economy. With rise of technology based fin-tech startups, SMEs & platforms, the normalization of accepting digital payments brought secured and précised payments transaction even to common man in India. The Cashless economy flounces across the landscape of Indian economy, where all our money dealings jingle not in pockets & purses but reverberate silently through digital apps. In a nation overflowing with enthusiasm and dynamism, the tinkling coins and laying the paper currency notes are making mode for a masterpiece of digital transactions.
This article explores into the multi-faceted aspects & roles of Startups and advanced digital payment apps in India towards cashless economy.
Proposals of Indian Government for Cashless Economy:
India’s journey towards a cashless economy isn’t merely a transition; it’s a vibrant saga of ingenuity, entrepreneurial spirit, and technological prowess. This metamorphosis isn’t just confined to urban centers; it’s a bridge connecting the aspirations of millions, fostering financial inclusion even in the farthest corners of the nation. Starting from the major burst through Aadhaar enabled UPI, FASTag for cash-free troll payments, e-RUPI and many other ground breaking step towards financial inclusion introduced by India has setting models to the world. ‘Digital India’, a flagship program of Indian government with a vision to make the country digitally empowered has increased the awareness on cashless economy.
The move of Demonetization - a surgical strike against corruption taken by Indian government compelled the entire world to engage in digital transactions in order to curb the black money. Therefore, the government’s initiatives, like demonetization in 2016, spurred a rapid adoption of digital transactions. Since the first move on was taken in the year 2016, the usage of digital transactions became the norm in India. The launch of UPI- Unified Payments Interface by NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) provided computer-able systems and immediate payment services platform (IMPS) for flawless payment transfers. DBT- Direct Benefit Transfer, an Indian government scheme that made the capital benefits and subsidies transfer directly to the bank account of beneficiaries for many various welfare schemes including MGNREGA, old-age pensions and LPG subsidy.
"In the realm of cashless economy, the pixels of replacing the paper notes with PIN numbers, finger prints and QR codes illuminating a path where innovation meets convenience"
Digital Transaction Apps by Startups & its Innovative Solutions: Startups are based in various cities across India and are making significant strides in their respective niches, as long as offering innovative solutions for digital transactions, investments, banking, & financial administration by offering integrated digital apps.
Contactless Payments: The Fintech Startups are pioneering contactless payment solutions using Near Field Communication (NFC) and QR codes, allowing users to make payments without any physical contacts. These methods have gained traction, especially in retail stores, restaurants, and public shopping outlets. Along with well-established businesses, small merchants are using digital payments to streamline transactions and widen their customer base. The extension of QR code-based payments has simplified transactions for both businesses and consumers. BharatPe - Shashvat Nakrani, Founder, starting their journey in 2018, BharatPe is a Haryana based Digital payment platform that allows access payments from any app and derive loans from anywhere whenever we need. The company acts as a one-stop financial destination and allows millions of merchants by offering safe, secured and easy-to-use financial products. ‘BharatPe - Transforming small businesses across the Bharat’.
Integration of UPI: Various startups are integrating UPI-based payment systems into their apps and enabling users to make instant bank-to-bank transfers & payments seamlessly. Their apps endow with a unified platform for various services such as bill payments, booking tickets, and shopping. The rise of victorious digital payment apps like Google Pay, Paytm and PhonePe empowered the greater number of people in India not only the urban areas also the rural corners. Today, the scenario of old fruit shop seller accepting the payments digitally using the QR codes showcases the depth of India’s digital payments voyage. Khatabook - Ravish Naresh, Founder, founded in 2019 in Bengaluru, Khatabook is an app designed for small businesses and shopkeepers to maintain digital ledger accounts. It helps digitize traditional bookkeeping and simplifies managing credit transactions. ‘Simplify business, empower merchants - Khatabook’.
AI-Powered Financial Management: Startups are leveraging and developing AI-driven financial management tools that enable the users to track expenses, handle budgets, and make informed financial decisions. These apps evaluate spending patterns to provide personalized recommendations for users. Cred, app oriented financial platform founded in 2018 at Bengaluru, allows the credit users to manage the numerous cards with premium credit score. Also the app equipped with the AI-backed protect feature that tracks every single hint of a credit card payment & card usage statistics including due-date reminders, use-up & expenses and so on. ‘Get exclusive rewards for paying your credit card bills through most rewarding credit card bill payment app’.
Digital Wallets: Fin-tech startups are consistently enhancing digital wallet functionalities by offering a range of services including money transfers, bill payments, investing options and even reward programs. They focus on user-friendly interfaces and additional security features to attract and retain users. Also they allow the users to carry & transfer money in digital formats by linking the credit & debit card information to respective digital payment applications. Niyo - Vinay Bagri, Co-Founder & CEO, a startup headquartered in Bengaluru founded in 2015, Nivo focus on creating simplest, smartest and safest banking process for users by blending technology with finance. It offers digital banking solutions, including salary accounts and global travel cards. It falls for easy access to banking services, especially for blue-collar workers and those with unbalanced income circle. ‘With the house of Niyo, explore the suite of charming financial products’.
Microcredit & Lending Services: Some startups have introduced microcredit and lending services through digital apps that provides quick & hassle-free access to credit individuals and small businesses. Such services reduce the dependency on cash for immediate financial needs. Groww - Lalit Keshre, CEO - An investment platform based in Bengaluru since its inception in 2016, the startup simplifies mutual fund investments. It allows users to invest in mutual funds, stocks, gold, and other investment options through its user-friendly app. ‘Groww - All things finance, right here’.
Financial Inclusion Initiatives: Numerous startups are focusing on reaching the un-banked and under-banked populations by providing easy-to-use apps for basic to critical banking services. These apps often support multiple languages and have simple interfaces modified to diverse needs of user groups. Slice - Rajan Bajaj, Founder & CEO, Based in Mumbai and founded in 2019, Slice is a dynamic digital transaction app-based startup cum unicorn that offers a credit card alternative targeted at millennial. It provides a digital-first credit card experience with attractive features like instant issuance, no annual fees, and easy-to-understand terms. ‘Feel easy with Money – slice’.
Lastly, with the advent innovative solutions, digital payments apps and the narrative of financial services by startups in India is undergoing a paradigmatic evolution towards powerful cashless economy. The extensive implementation of digital transactions fueled by innovative startups and government initiatives underscoring transformative move with far-reaching paybacks for, individuals, businesses and the entire country's economic landscape.
This article explores into the multi-faceted aspects & roles of Startups and advanced digital payment apps in India towards cashless economy.
Proposals of Indian Government for Cashless Economy:
India’s journey towards a cashless economy isn’t merely a transition; it’s a vibrant saga of ingenuity, entrepreneurial spirit, and technological prowess. This metamorphosis isn’t just confined to urban centers; it’s a bridge connecting the aspirations of millions, fostering financial inclusion even in the farthest corners of the nation. Starting from the major burst through Aadhaar enabled UPI, FASTag for cash-free troll payments, e-RUPI and many other ground breaking step towards financial inclusion introduced by India has setting models to the world. ‘Digital India’, a flagship program of Indian government with a vision to make the country digitally empowered has increased the awareness on cashless economy.
The move of Demonetization - a surgical strike against corruption taken by Indian government compelled the entire world to engage in digital transactions in order to curb the black money. Therefore, the government’s initiatives, like demonetization in 2016, spurred a rapid adoption of digital transactions. Since the first move on was taken in the year 2016, the usage of digital transactions became the norm in India. The launch of UPI- Unified Payments Interface by NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) provided computer-able systems and immediate payment services platform (IMPS) for flawless payment transfers. DBT- Direct Benefit Transfer, an Indian government scheme that made the capital benefits and subsidies transfer directly to the bank account of beneficiaries for many various welfare schemes including MGNREGA, old-age pensions and LPG subsidy."In the realm of cashless economy, the pixels of replacing the paper notes with PIN numbers, finger prints and QR codes illuminating a path where innovation meets convenience"
Digital Transaction Apps by Startups & its Innovative Solutions: Startups are based in various cities across India and are making significant strides in their respective niches, as long as offering innovative solutions for digital transactions, investments, banking, & financial administration by offering integrated digital apps.
Contactless Payments: The Fintech Startups are pioneering contactless payment solutions using Near Field Communication (NFC) and QR codes, allowing users to make payments without any physical contacts. These methods have gained traction, especially in retail stores, restaurants, and public shopping outlets. Along with well-established businesses, small merchants are using digital payments to streamline transactions and widen their customer base. The extension of QR code-based payments has simplified transactions for both businesses and consumers. BharatPe - Shashvat Nakrani, Founder, starting their journey in 2018, BharatPe is a Haryana based Digital payment platform that allows access payments from any app and derive loans from anywhere whenever we need. The company acts as a one-stop financial destination and allows millions of merchants by offering safe, secured and easy-to-use financial products. ‘BharatPe - Transforming small businesses across the Bharat’.Integration of UPI: Various startups are integrating UPI-based payment systems into their apps and enabling users to make instant bank-to-bank transfers & payments seamlessly. Their apps endow with a unified platform for various services such as bill payments, booking tickets, and shopping. The rise of victorious digital payment apps like Google Pay, Paytm and PhonePe empowered the greater number of people in India not only the urban areas also the rural corners. Today, the scenario of old fruit shop seller accepting the payments digitally using the QR codes showcases the depth of India’s digital payments voyage. Khatabook - Ravish Naresh, Founder, founded in 2019 in Bengaluru, Khatabook is an app designed for small businesses and shopkeepers to maintain digital ledger accounts. It helps digitize traditional bookkeeping and simplifies managing credit transactions. ‘Simplify business, empower merchants - Khatabook’.AI-Powered Financial Management: Startups are leveraging and developing AI-driven financial management tools that enable the users to track expenses, handle budgets, and make informed financial decisions. These apps evaluate spending patterns to provide personalized recommendations for users. Cred, app oriented financial platform founded in 2018 at Bengaluru, allows the credit users to manage the numerous cards with premium credit score. Also the app equipped with the AI-backed protect feature that tracks every single hint of a credit card payment & card usage statistics including due-date reminders, use-up & expenses and so on. ‘Get exclusive rewards for paying your credit card bills through most rewarding credit card bill payment app’.Digital Wallets: Fin-tech startups are consistently enhancing digital wallet functionalities by offering a range of services including money transfers, bill payments, investing options and even reward programs. They focus on user-friendly interfaces and additional security features to attract and retain users. Also they allow the users to carry & transfer money in digital formats by linking the credit & debit card information to respective digital payment applications. Niyo - Vinay Bagri, Co-Founder & CEO, a startup headquartered in Bengaluru founded in 2015, Nivo focus on creating simplest, smartest and safest banking process for users by blending technology with finance. It offers digital banking solutions, including salary accounts and global travel cards. It falls for easy access to banking services, especially for blue-collar workers and those with unbalanced income circle. ‘With the house of Niyo, explore the suite of charming financial products’.Microcredit & Lending Services: Some startups have introduced microcredit and lending services through digital apps that provides quick & hassle-free access to credit individuals and small businesses. Such services reduce the dependency on cash for immediate financial needs. Groww - Lalit Keshre, CEO - An investment platform based in Bengaluru since its inception in 2016, the startup simplifies mutual fund investments. It allows users to invest in mutual funds, stocks, gold, and other investment options through its user-friendly app. ‘Groww - All things finance, right here’.Financial Inclusion Initiatives: Numerous startups are focusing on reaching the un-banked and under-banked populations by providing easy-to-use apps for basic to critical banking services. These apps often support multiple languages and have simple interfaces modified to diverse needs of user groups. Slice - Rajan Bajaj, Founder & CEO, Based in Mumbai and founded in 2019, Slice is a dynamic digital transaction app-based startup cum unicorn that offers a credit card alternative targeted at millennial. It provides a digital-first credit card experience with attractive features like instant issuance, no annual fees, and easy-to-understand terms. ‘Feel easy with Money – slice’.Lastly, with the advent innovative solutions, digital payments apps and the narrative of financial services by startups in India is undergoing a paradigmatic evolution towards powerful cashless economy. The extensive implementation of digital transactions fueled by innovative startups and government initiatives underscoring transformative move with far-reaching paybacks for, individuals, businesses and the entire country's economic landscape.
