ONDC Onboards Grocery Retailer BigBasket As A Seller

The Tata-backed retailer Bigbasket has joined the Open Network For Digital Commerce (ONDC) protocol's platform, according to a tweet sent out on Tuesday.

This was shortly after Walmart-backed PhonePe's Pincode, a hyperlocal seller app, was made available on ONDC. The buyer side of the app currently supports PhonePe, Paytm, Meesho, Mystore, Craftsvilla, Magicpin, and Spice Money in addition to PhonePe.

The ONDC protocol claims to have over 25,000 merchants and over 24 lakh products on the platform in categories including food and drinks, groceries, home and décor, beauty and personal care, fashion, and electronics. The protocol is now undergoing beta testing in Meerut and Bengaluru.

Recently, it was revealed that Axis Bank has also used ONDC to create a new grocery platform. Despite having a sizable database of sellers and small businesses, ecommerce giants like Flipkart, Amazon, and Google have not yet adopted the protocol.

The protocol connects customers of the buying app with nearby retailers using seller applications. The protocol offers opportunities for technology vendors to join the ecosystem and for logistics companies to complete orders.

After becoming a non-profit in December 2021 with Quality Council of India and Protean eGov Technologies, ONDC intends to raise additional funding for operations from the BSE, NSE, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Axis Bank, HDFC, SBI, SIDBI, NABARD, Bank of Baroda, CSCeGovernance Services, UCO Bank, Central Depository Services, ICICI Bank, NSDL, Bank of India, and Punjab National Bank.

The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) is a government-led initiative in India aimed at creating an open-source platform that can enable digital commerce transactions between businesses (B2B) and consumers (B2C) across different sectors, including retail, agriculture, and finance. The platform is expected to be built on blockchain technology and will offer a range of services, including secure transactions, smart contracts, and transparent supply chain management.

The ONDC is being developed by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry in collaboration with various stakeholders, including industry associations, startups, and technology companies. The platform is expected to bring together buyers, sellers, logistics providers, and other service providers, and provide them with a common platform for digital commerce.

The ONDC aims to address the challenges faced by small and medium-sized businesses in India by providing them with access to a wider customer base, reducing transaction costs, and enabling efficient supply chain management. The platform is expected to be available in multiple languages and will be accessible through both web and mobile-based applications.