WhatsApp Pay gears up to take on rivals: Report

Facebook has complied with RBI's data localization norms, which was also the reason behind delaying WhatsApp Pay's launch

After dominating the messaging service for a long time, WhatsApp is gearing up to take on rivals like Google Pay, Walmart-Flipkart's PhonePe, Alibaba-backed Paytm, and Amazon Pay in the UPI-based digital payments sector with WhatsApp Pay.

The Facebook-owned app claims to have satisfied Reserve Bank of India's data localization norms and hopes to receive the central bank's nod for WhatsApp Pay soon, according to report by the Business Standard.

One of the reasons behind the delay in the launch of WhatsApp Pay was the company's compliance with the RBI guidelines and regulatory norms of Unified Payment Interface (UPI) system, including data localization rules.

"We are keen to launch WhatsApp Payments in the country and will continue to work with the government, local banks, and other institutions to understand their requirements, drive innovation, and provide financial services, inclusivity, and empowerment across the socio-economic spectrum,” head of WhatsApp India operations Abhijit Bose is quoted as saying in the report.

He said the app would be free of cost to the users, like other digital payments applications. "Our goal is to help making payment as easy as sending a message,” he said.

Also read: ICICI bank allows customers to use WhatsApp to create FDs, pay bills: Here's how

WhatsApp is the most widely used app with over 400 million users in India and it has 177.8 million active daily users, a gargantuan dominance when compared to PhonePe, Paytm, or Google Pay, which has a 40 per cent market share in the digital payments sector, according to the report.

The report also points out that the time spent on WhatsApp is much higher than the usage of other apps. This is an advantage for the app, which adds 177.8 million monthly downloads.

Other areas where WhatsApp has leverage is in ecommerce. Facebook's tie-up with Jio Mart, Jio's ecommerce arm that was launched a few months ago, is key in WhastApp acting as a link between the buyers and sellers on the platform. There could be an option for the customer to book, order, and pay for the purchases without having to actually leave the app.