Mobile commerce player Paytm is working on a platform that will allow its users to add cash into their accounts at retail counters, including kirana stores.
As of now customers can add money through credit cards. The company is now carrying out a pilot in the Delhi-NCR region and has tied up with a few offline retailers to see if the over-the-counter cash mechanism can be scaled up across the country.
Amit Lakhotia, Senior Vice-President, Paytm, said users will be able to add cash up to ₹5,000 into their account by paying the same to the offline retailer. The process would, however, require the retailer to have a Paytm wallet. This is similar to adding talktime on a pre-paid mobile connection.
Paytm's move will help the firm provide more conveniences to consumers who are regularly shopping on various e-commerce platforms through digital wallets. Lakhotia refused to divulge any further details on the same.
Paytm, founded by Vijay Shekhar Sharma, is the consumer brand of India’s leading mobile internet company, One97 Communications, Paytm is head-quartered in Delhi NCR. One97 investors include SAIF Partners, Intel Capital and SAP Ventures. It has recently raised a substantial amount from China's ínternet giant Alibaba.com.
Money transfer facilityThe company is constantly investing in creating an easy and convenient money transfer facility for the digital wallet users. It has recently introduced the Immediate Payment Service and also has integrated Netbanking on its platform. This allows Paytm users to transfer money into any bank account.
In order to get the wallet-to-bank account transfer facility, a user has to be mobile or e-mail verified and must be registered on the system for over 45 days. The balance in the Paytm wallet must be a minimum of ₹2,000 and the transaction amount must exceed ₹1,000. The daily upper limit for wallet-to-bank account transactions is ₹5,000 and the monthly limit is ₹25,000.