PhonePe has received an insurance broking licence from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI). Last year, PhonePe entered the insurtech sector with a limited ‘corporate agent’ licence, which allowed the company to partner with only three insurance companies per category. With the new ‘direct broking’ licence, PhonePe can distribute insurance products from all insurance companies in India.

It also allows PhonePe to offer personalised product recommendations to its 300-million user base, and a bigger portfolio of insurance products for Indian consumers.

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PhonePe forayed into the insurance segment in January 2020 as a ‘corporate agent’ and has since launched offerings in general insurance, term insurance and health insurance.

On the direct broking licence, PhonePe’s Vice-President and Head of Insurance Gunjan Ghai said, “This licence is a big milestone in our insurance journey. We are building a full-service platform through innovative products in partnership with insurers. This move will lead us closer to our goal of becoming a one-stop destination for insurance needs.”

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PhonePe is a digital payments platform where users can send and receive money, recharge mobiles, DTH, data cards, pay at stores, make utility payments, buy gold, and make investments. PhonePe forayed into financial services in 2017 with its product Gold, which allows users to buy 24-karat gold securely on its platform.

PhonePe has since launched several mutual funds and insurance products like tax-saving funds, liquid funds, international travel insurance and Corona Care, a Covid-focused insurance product, among others. PhonePe also launched its Switch platform in 2018; customers can place orders on over 600 apps including Ola, Swiggy, Myntra, IRCTC, Goibibo, RedBus and so on, from the PhonePe app. PhonePe is accepted at 20-plus million merchant outlets across India.