PhonePe Receives RBI’s Final Nod to Function as Payment Aggregator

India’s leading fintech platform, PhonePe, has secured the final authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as an online payment aggregator (PA). This approval paves the way for PhonePe to significantly scale its payment gateway business, offering merchants seamless onboarding, smooth integrations, and an improved checkout experience aimed at boosting payment success rates.

With this milestone, PhonePe is set to further strengthen its position in the digital payments ecosystem while driving financial inclusion for small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

PhonePe’s Authorisation as Payment Aggregator

The RBI’s final nod allows PhonePe to officially operate as an online payment aggregator, enabling it to bring more merchants into India’s growing digital economy. The company plans to leverage this approval to expand its merchant base across SMEs, startups, and large enterprises, ensuring they gain access to reliable and easy-to-integrate payment solutions.

Yuvraj Singh Shekhawat, Chief Business Officer – Merchant Business at PhonePe, said:

“With this authorisation, PhonePe is well-positioned to accelerate financial inclusion by providing accessible payment solutions to businesses that were previously underserved, particularly in the SME segment.”

This reflects PhonePe’s strategy of building a merchant-first ecosystem where businesses of all scales can benefit from digital payment technologies.

Scaling Payment Gateway Offerings

PhonePe’s payment gateway will now grow further under the RBI’s regulatory approval, offering features designed to simplify digital transactions.

Key enhancements include:

• Instant merchant onboarding – reducing the time it takes for businesses to start accepting online payments.

• Developer-friendly integrations – APIs and SDKs tailored for faster, more flexible implementation across platforms.

• Frictionless checkout experience – ensuring higher transaction success rates and reduced payment failures.

These features are crucial in today’s digital-first economy, where seamless checkout directly impacts customer satisfaction and repeat transactions.

Empowering SMEs and Financial Inclusion

A core focus of PhonePe’s expansion will be small and medium businesses (SMEs), which have historically been underserved in the digital payments ecosystem. By providing affordable and reliable payment solutions, PhonePe aims to empower millions of local merchants and help them adopt cashless transactions.

This move aligns with the government’s Digital India vision, ensuring that businesses across tier-2 and tier-3 cities can benefit from modern financial technologies.

PhonePe’s Market Presence in India

Founded in 2016, PhonePe has grown into one of India’s largest fintech platforms with impressive scale and reach:

• 650+ million registered users

• 45 million merchant partners

• 360 million+ daily transactions

PhonePe’s ecosystem goes beyond digital payments. The company operates in areas such as:

• Lending and credit services

• Insurance distribution

• Wealth management products

• Hyperlocal e-commerce via Pincode

• The Indus AppStore, an Indian alternative to Google Play Store

This diversified portfolio makes PhonePe more than just a payments company—it is now a full-stack fintech player.

Boosting Payment Success Rates and User Trust

For merchants and customers, one of the biggest challenges in digital payments is failed transactions. PhonePe’s upgraded payment gateway, backed by RBI’s regulatory oversight, aims to:

• Reduce transaction failures

• Improve reliability and trust in digital payments

• Offer businesses a robust platform for scaling their online operations

By addressing these pain points, PhonePe will not only strengthen merchant confidence but also encourage greater consumer adoption of digital transactions.

The Road Ahead for PhonePe

With RBI’s approval in hand, PhonePe is poised to become a stronger competitor to other major players in India’s payment aggregator market such as PayU, Razorpay, and Paytm.

The company’s focus on scalability, SME empowerment, and financial inclusion suggests that its role in India’s digital payment revolution will only grow in the coming years. The authorisation will also ensure that PhonePe operates under strict compliance, further enhancing its credibility among regulators, merchants, and consumers alike.

Conclusion

The RBI’s final authorisation marks a major milestone for PhonePe, solidifying its position as a key player in India’s fintech sector. With its payment gateway expansion, SME-focused solutions, and strong digital ecosystem, PhonePe is ready to play a pivotal role in India’s journey toward becoming a truly cashless economy.