Amazon Pay could soon get over a billion dollars to take on Google Pay, Paytm, Phonepe and others

• Amazon Pay is likely to get over $1.4 billion in funding from its Singapore-registered parent entity, according to financial intelligence firm paper.vc.
• If the investment comes through and at one-go, it will be the biggest investment raised by a payments firm in India – beating Paytm’s $1 billion raise in 2017.
• The funding could help Amazon strengthen its foothold in India’s payments ecosystem as it continues to lag behind Google Pay, Paytm, and PhonePe.

Jeff Bezos seems in no mood to be held back by other players in India, and not just in retail. Amazon Pay is likely to get over $1.4 billion in funding from its Singapore-registered parent entity, according to financial intelligence firm paper.vc.

Paper.vc said that “the company owned by e-commerce major Amazon has increased its authorized share capital from $820 million to $2.2 billion.”

This is indicative of a big-ticket funding coming its way. “'While the massive change in authorized capital in and of itself does not confirm an investment, historical data suggests that an infusion is likely to arrive in the coming weeks. There is a chance that the $1.4 billion is processed in one go. If that happens, this infusion would be the single largest investment made by Amazon in India so far,” Jayraj Patel, analyst at paper.vc told Business Insider.

If the investment comes through and at one-go, it will be the biggest investment raised by a payments firm in India – beating Paytm’s $1 billion raise in 2017.

Amazon Pay has so far raised ₹4,355 crore since 2016 -- with the latest funding having come through in January 2020. In January, Amazon Pay India Pvt Ltd had received ₹1,355 crore from its parent entity.

Funds could help Amazon fend off competition

The funding could help Amazon strengthen its foothold in India as it continues to fall behind the likes of Google Pay, Paytm and PhonePe.

The Facebook owned messaging app, WhatsApp is the latest entrant – driving its financial inclusion push in India with its foray into lending, micro-insurance, and micro-pension products. While WhatsApp Pay is a very small player now, bolstered with the partnership with Reliance Jio, it is looking to make a mark in the payments ecosystem in India. Abhijit Bose, WhatsApp India head, had shared the plans for the company’s foray into financial services in India at the Global Fintech Festival in July, 2020.

WhatsApp already has a competitive advantage over the other players in the ecosystem, as it comes with an existing 400 million user base.

Amazon Pay has also been ramping up its efforts in India. Having already into financial services by offering insurance on the platform, Amazon Pay had also recently introduced the option for credit card bill payments. Today, the e-commerce giant also announced a partnership with Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC), which will allow users to book reserved train tickets on Amazon.

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