In recent years, PhonePe has become the largest UPI payments provider in India. PhonePe has over 400 million registered users and more than one in four Indians are now using PhonePe. The PhonePe Group was acquired by the Flipkart Group in 2016 and today is India’s largest digital payments platform.
Since its launch, PhonePe has successfully digitized more than 35 million offline merchants spread across Tier 2, 3, 4 cities and beyond, covering 99% of pin codes in the country. In January 2023, PhonePe declared the completion of its domicile shift to India and the full separation from Flipkart. Now, the CEO of PhonePE has reveleaed why PhonePe was merged with Flipkart.
Sameer Nigam, the CEO of PhonePe, responded to claims of being a foreign-owned company due to its connection with Walmart, emphasizing its significant tax contributions to India.
PhonePe’s Journey
PhonePe, co-founded by Nigam, started in India and merged with Flipkart in 2016 due to competitive pressures from rivals like Paytm. This move was crucial for PhonePe to compete effectively in India’s digital payments scene.
Nigam explained that merging with Flipkart was essential to harness the potential of the UPI ecosystem. The merger provided PhonePe with support from Flipkart’s founders and resources to build something significant.
In response to allegations of foreign ownership, Nigam clarified that aligning with Flipkart’s jurisdiction in Singapore was a strategic decision. He emphasized PhonePe’s recent shift back to India as proof of its commitment to its Indian roots.
Flipkart’s Acquisition by Walmart
When Flipkart was acquired by Walmart, PhonePe’s journey took another turn. Despite uncertainties, Nigam praised Walmart’s cooperation during PhonePe’s transition back to India, highlighting their substantial tax payments.
