Travel-focussed payment solutions firm PayMate hit a roadblock post Covid-19, but focus on other areas such as invoice discounting helped in damage control

PayMate is improving process efficiency and providing greater transparency in cash flows

Last October, the Reserve Bank of India announced that it would allow interoperability among prepaid payment instruments (PPI) in phases, including e-wallets of private players. At the time, the expectation was that interoperability among KYC-compliant PPIs would be implemented by mid-April.

Public sector banks have a lot of catching up to do to engage with fintech players.

It has been nearly a year since the government implemented demonetisation and the effects of the decision are still being witnessed and analysed.

Banks are allowing developers, technology companies and fintech players to plug into their core banking systems to offer new products and services.

New business models take root - and some flourish - as more and more companies seek to tap into the demand among the unwealthy millions.

If cash is going out of fashion, thanks to the credit card, it won’t be long before plastic makes way for another payment system. And this one could well be in your mobile handset.

The tipping point could have come in August, when the number of Indians with mobile phones crossed 200 million. Perhaps that was the critical mass that would have convinced transaction-led services companies to go beyond the internet and tap the mobile platform.