One97 Communications Ltd, the company behind Paytm, is reportedly expected to finalise private sector lender HDFC Bank as the third partner for migrating merchants to the Paytm platform, according to a report by Moneycontrol Citing sources. The troubled Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL) originally onboarded these merchants through the Paytm app as UPI merchants. However, the Reserve Bank of India instructed PPBL to halt certain operational services on March 15.
Axis Bank and Yes Bank have already started operations on the Paytm platform, marking significant progress in expanding their banking partnerships. Currently, approximately three crore merchants are active on the One97 Communications Ltd (OCL) platform. Additionally, Paytm is engaged in ongoing discussions with Canara Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank, with Canara Bank anticipated to begin operations on the platform as early as next week.
However, HDFC Bank, Canara Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank did not respond to the query, as per the report.
In the coming week, it is anticipated that both HDFC Bank and SBI will join as payment service provider (PSP) banks for Paytm's third-party application provider (TPAP) business, facilitating the operation of the UPI consumer business, states the report. Paytm boasts approximately nine crore UPI users currently active on its platform.
On March 15, coinciding with the RBI's deadline for PPBL to cease certain banking operations, both YES Bank and Axis Bank were successfully integrated into the Paytm UPI platform. Notably, the official website of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which is responsible for overseeing UPI, lists SBI and HDFC as institutions currently in the process of integration.
YES Bank initially initiated operations with a closed user group using the @ptyes handle, while Axis Bank adopted the @ptaxis handle. SBI is expected to adopt the @ptsbi handle, and HDFC is anticipated to use the @pthdfc handle, according to the report.
In addition to its primary role, YES Bank is responsible for migrating existing @paytm handles. Currently, Paytm has approximately 90 million UPI users utilising @paytm handles.