NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

A burgeoning middle class, rising levels of disposable income, better internet services than ever before, skyrocketing growth of smartphone usage, investor money flowing into the mobile payments industry– the time has never been better for India’s mobile wallet startups, for sure. But is the Indian consumer reluctant to give up cash? If so, why?

The number of mobile wallet users has been steadily growing, and has reached about 140-150 Mn, thanks to mindblowing offers and discounts. Interestingly, Paytm, the biggest player in the market today, has over 100 Mn wallet users, registering over 75 million transactions every month.

According to RBI data, between January to May last year, there have been 204.81 Mn mobile wallet transactions valued at INR 5,222 Cr. In 2014-15, more than 255 Mn transactions were registered, with a combined value of transactions of INR 8,184 Cr. This is a 137 per cent increase from 107.61 Mn transactions during 2013-14.

Despite the steady rise in the number of mobile wallet users in the country, there are still some factors that are hindering its usage and preventing it from going mainstream.