Bengaluru, NFPost: Even though buckled by the regulatory hurdles for its launch in the worlds second-largest fintech market, WhatsApp is working hard for the launch of WhatsApp Pay by complying with the regulatory process.
In its appeal in the Supreme Court, the Facebook-owned instant messaging app has informed that it is now fully compliant with the RBI’s data localisation norms. WhatsApp told the apex court in its response that it has now “localised five data elements” that were identified by the banking regulator and mandated them to store in India only.
WhatsApp is working hard to get into the Indian market where the existing players like Paytm, PhonePe, GooglePay and government owned BHIM App are ruling the roost. Also, the Covid-19 has opened up a plethora of opportunity in the payment space.
Third party assessment
The company’s argument is based on an independent third-party auditor, certified by central government’s cybersecurity firm CERT-in. The report submitted confirms that WhatsApp Payments satisfies the data localisation requirements under the RBI circular.
WhatsApp Pay was first tested in India. The instant messaging platform started the testing phase back in 2018, using UPI as the mode of transaction.
The Facebook deal with Jio, India’s largest telecom company with 5.6 million mobile subscribers will provide the perfect launchpad for WhatsApp Payments in the country. The pan India reach of Reliance will be a correct launch pad for the company to expand and customer acquisition strategy.
As per Arvian Research Director India is going through a digital shift where peoples buying habit and wealth management activities are going for thorough shake up.
“It is high time we should understand that Indian mobile commerce is growing exponentially and it is a prime factor in the growth of digital payments. Mobile commerce accounts for 48% of digital commerce and it is expected to reach 70% by 2022,” said Arvian Research Director.
WhatsApp has over 400 million monthly active users in India. It will be an additional support for the company to grow in a fast pace in India. Sicne the India entry got delayed, WhatsApp already launched its payment service in Brazil.
In a Facebook post, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced the company’s launch of payments service for people using WhatsApp in Brazil.
“We’re making sending and receiving money as easy as sharing photos. the small businesses will be able to make sales right within WhatsApp. To do this, we’re building on Facebook Pay, which provides a secure and consistent way to make payments across our apps,” said Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg.
WhatsApp made the payment seamlessly with solid tech back up and built payments security feature. To make the payment seamlessly, a special six digit PIN or fingerprint will be required to prevent unauthorized transactions.
Zuckerberg cleared that WhatsApp is working with local banks, including Banco do Brasil, Nubank, Sicredi as well as Cielo, the leading payments processor for merchants in Brazil. The company has built an open model to welcome more partners in the future.
