FINO, a technology solutions provider, has acquired the pre-paid mobile payment business of erstwhile Nokia Mobile Payment Services. FINO is the largest business correspondent (BC) in the country with a network of 31,000 transaction points.
Entering into the pre-paid mobile payments space, the new entity Alpha Payment Services India Pvt Ltd (Alpha) (erstwhile Nokia Mobile Payment Services) will offer services such as money transfers, utility bill payments, mobile and DTH recharges, etc under the brand ‘Takatak Money’.
The technology (software), agents and customer base of Nokia Mobile Payments Services are part of the deal. The valuation of the all-cash deal was not disclosed.
“The service will be an SMS-based paid service and does not require a smartphone or an Internet connection for functioning. Further, it would be bank and telecom operator agnostic,” said Mr Manish Khera, CEO, FINO.
“We are set to target the mid-tier section of society with Rs 90,000 to 1.5 lakh income per annum bracket,” said Mr Khera. FINO currently services 50 million customers across a host of banking products and services covering over 50,000 villages.
“We plan to reach a customer base of 100 million by 2015,” Mr Khera said.