Paytm, Axis Bank to apply this week for third-party route for UPI: Report

One97 Communications Limited, which owns Paytm, and recently joined hands with Axis Bank in the wake of Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) crackdown against Paytm Payments Bank, will apply this week for the third-party application provider (TPAP) route, with the application to be sent to the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), Moneycontrol has reported.

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The application will be a joint one with Axis Bank, the Mumbai-based private sector lender, the report added.

The two sides are reported to have been in discussions with NPCI over the past few days, and the application is likely to be formally submitted with a signed intent to collaborate. NPCI, which is backed by RBI, is an entity that oversees and regulates Unified Payments Interface (UPI).

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On January 31, the central bank announced a string of measures against Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL), Paytm's banking arm, over ‘persistent non-compliance.’ These included prohibiting PPBL from onboarding new customers after February 29; the deadline was later extended to March 15.

As a result, One97 was forced to seek partnerships with external banks to sustain Paytm's UPI business. On its platform, the Noida-based fintech giant has an estimated UPI user base of 90 million (9 crore).

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Paytm is also believed to have held talks with lenders such as Canara Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Yes Bank; none of the discussions, however, have concluded as yet. Axis Bank, on the other hand, already serves as a key payment provider for major UPI players like Amazon Pay, Cred, Google Pay, and PhonePe.