Even more than three years after demonetisation and all-out efforts to make most transactions through electronic, cash is still king, as it thrives in a digital India, said fintech start-up Paytm founder Vijay Sekhar Sharma.
"While cashless economy is not possible in India, less cash economy will be in the future. Less cash is the only solution, not the elimination of cash," Sharma told IANS in an interview after unveiling an all-in-one payment gateway on Tuesday.
Asserting that it would take 5-10 years for India to make the transition to digital payments from the traditional mode of cash, Sharma, 41, said the e-payment industry benefitted more from the November 8, 2016 note ban and withdrawal of old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 denominations.
"I think it (demonetisation) helped the industry despite lack of specific help. But the world has changed since then. It is about the scale of distribution of merchants that is what is propelling digital payments," said Sharma.
Most of the cash not only came back into circulation, but also remains as the mode of payment for the majority due to its convenience for the people used to such transactions.
Expounding Paytm's zero service charge, Sharma said the strategy is sustainable as it leads to acquiring more customers and merchants, enabling newer business opportunities.
Paytm also does not levy a service charge to small merchants for its payments services, unlike organised players like Uber.
"Though there is a monetisation model, the merchants who are small shopkeepers, become our financial services customers as they open a bank account, which is profitable."
Paytm secured a Payments Bank license from the Reserve Bank of India to offer a savings bank account, Rupay debit card and money transfer services.
"We are banking on payment services acquiring customers and merchants who avail banking, lending, insurance, wealth and software services like billing software and business ledger software services eventually," Sharma noted.
The mobile first bank services include zero balance and zero digital transaction charge accounts.
"Basically, payments, cloud, commerce and financial services are a cohort we follow. So, payments is our customer as well as merchant acquisition. If it breaks even, we are happy because other line items make more money, he affirmed.
Noting that in a market like India, one cannot price services at a premium unlike in a developed country like the US, the billionaire businessman said a consumer in a developing country would not be able to afford such a hefty charge.
Forbes ranked Sharma as India's youngest billionaire in 2017, with a net worth of $2.1 billion.
While several countries operate on the model of higher service charges, Sharma said newer business models have to be discovered in India, as customer lifecycle value is accounted for more stages than in other nations.
Asked about an upscale retailer like Zara not giving a wallet payment option during its recent end of season sale in Bengaluru, Sharma said Paytm was addressing such hiccups with its all-in-one payment solutions.
"It's an opportunity, because if the retailer has our all-in-one point of sale machine, where in they enter the amount, it shows both the Quick Response code (QR) and card payment options," he observed.
Sharma compared older swiping payment machine to feature phones and modern ones to feature-rich smartphones.
"If you notice, they look like feature phones and the modern day card machine is more a smartphone like. You can add the smatphone components, which can add the features," reiterated Sharma.
Though Paytm's all-in-one QR point of sale machine integrates the billing system, its chief executive said it was not ideal to have an independent QR feature.
Paytm has 16 million strong merchant user base, which Sharma aims to raise to 26 million base in the next one year.
Sharma has launched in this tech city an all-in-one payment gateway and Paytm Business Payments solution, which enable digital payments through multiple methods for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and an Android point of sale machine.
With the new gateway solution, collecting digital payments through multiple methods can be achieved seamlessly while Paytm Business Payments solution enables automated vendor payments, including employee salaries and customer refunds among others.
The One97 Communications-owned Paytm aims to help SMEs streamline and digitise their business activities using its new solutions, which enhance the overall efficiency of both accepting and making payments.
Paytm has a data bank of over 200 million saved cards and bank accounts, a feature which enables partner apps to shorten transaction times and propel faster conversions while using the all-in-one payment gateway.
Complementing the two solutions, Sharma also launched an all-in-one Android point of sale machine, which can accept payments through all forms such as cards, wallets, UPI apps and even cash.
The device has a QR code that supports all contact and contactless payments, coming with integrated billing software customized solutions for different sectors such as catering, ticketing, parking and others.
The handheld Android device is equipped with an in-built printer, scanner and can also generate bills.
Valued at $16 billion, Paytm is not alone in the fiercely competitive Indian fintech space where a dozen players like PhonePe, MobiKwik, Kotak 811 and deep pocketed international giants Google Pay and Amazon Pay are in the fray.
The proposal prepared by Vidya Bharati Akhil Bharatiya Shikshan Sansthan, the education wing of the RSS and submitted to the Human and Resource Development Ministry, also points out that co-education will have to be discontinued if working hours of schools are extended.
Comments
Bachelors club want to create rule for families.... First get married then U can follow this rules... and then dont stop modi to reunite his wife... U cheddis have ruined his family life...
It is RSS suggetion.. it means MAD
Learing sanskrit in schools and colleges....i dont think it is an issue at all....we learned kannada, hindi, english...sanskrit is also one of that kind....interesting...
Well, everyone understand the sanskrit, people read & understand the vedas, githas. May they turn real religion
Who are they to decide education strategy. It seems RSS is the supreme authority of governance than indian government. It shows RSS is the decision maker and indian government is simply implementing.
May Allah save our country.
Not all the suggestions are bad.
Support the idea:
- Banning co-education system.
- Relieving parents from Home works system.
- Learning Languages should be optional.
- Indianization of education is Ok, westernization has ruined the family values.
- Extra-curricular activity is good, to know the interest of children.
- Working parents can have option of having their children for long hours at schools where Hindus can study Sanskrit, Muslim can learn Arabic and Christians can have their preference.
Not supporting the idea:
- 12 hrs. is too much, most of the developed countries they limit the working hours of adults to 8 hrs. only.
- Forcing Sanskrit to all is too much.
Indian culture is good, family value is eroding which is bad for society as a whole. But forcing the ideas seems to be dangerous.
12Hrs, we don't want to tell even our enemy's children
Samskri : Nothing should be imposed. It is the people's choice.
We should see where the world is heading.
English : Now the important language is for this worldly life is English.
Arabic : Arabic is also big plus point for job seekers. 22 Countries have mother toungue as Arabic. This is the 2nd highest spoken language
DEAR FRIENDS ,
WHO COMMENTED ABOVE.. YOU PEOPLE FORGOT TO ASK WHO ARE THEY TO TELL TO GOV WHAT TO DO AND ALL..
WHAT THEY KNOW ABOUT SANSKRIT.. FIRST OF ALL THEY HAVE TO LEARN TO WEAR PROPER DRESS....NOT CHADIIES ...
RSS RSS RSS, in logo ko koi kaam nahin hain kya, indian citizens doesnt need your recommendations for education, go and teach your chaddis what to do and what not to do, hypocrites.
its a fact that children from India are spending 20~30% more time in Schools when compared to US/UK childrens..
For 8 Hours daily school times:
-> already they carry 5~6 kg school bags, this will raise to 8~9 kgs.
-> Children need to take healthy food, who will feed them during such a long period.
-> does all schools in states are eligible to keep the students for 12 hours with all such activities., if you survey our states may be hardly you can find 2~3% schools are fit with all activities...other 98% schools are hard to spend 8 hours.
-> why teachers must work for 12 hours daily (against labor law).
before, making any regulation gossips..pls just look for facts...
THE BACHELOR CLUB now wants to separate the FAMILIES ...
Wa re WA --- A clear Sign to those who think, the cheddis who are against women (Cheddis will never be successful with whatever they play with thier devilish agenda.)
Majority of their leaders arent married, hence any suggestion from them on how to raise children should be neglected!!!
None of the chaddis may know the sanskrit language before pushing others to learn
RSS is terrorising children, 12 hours schooling is too much for small children....and its inhuman....its okay if they go with discontinuing co-education....well and fine and its islamic way of thinking....However, at the end more expenses for developing country like India, will have to build more schools and colleges separately for both....
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