Fintech firm Cred has received in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for the payment aggregation (PA) business, marking the initial step towards gaining the final approval. This will allow the Bengaluru-based startup to expand into the merchant payments business alongside its current credit card bill payment platform.
Once the final approval is obtained, Cred will have the capability to settle and transfer funds independently, offering merchant payments to online sellers. The RBI’s draft guidelines for payment aggregators include stringent know-your-customer requirements for merchants. Additionally, Cred aims to develop an offline payments business and implement QR code-based ‘scan and pay’ payments at retail outlets, building on the UPI payments facility it is promoting.
Despite being the fourth largest UPI payments application, Cred has successfully grown its consumer payments business in a short time and aims to establish a comprehensive presence in the payment, shopping, and credit aspects of transactions.