Uber Ties Up With Paytm To Introduce Wallet-base Payment System In India

Gone are the days of searching your wallet to pay the cabbies who drive you home. Taxi app Uber has now introduced a wallet-style payment system in India in response to recent regulations that require all online transactions to pass through domestic payment systems.

Uber has joined hands with payment services firm Paytm after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said that the ride-sharing app had to have a two-step verification for card-based transactions.

The country’s apex bank also announced that users of the taxi app will have to open pre-paid virtual wallet accounts in order to make payments.

Earlier, users were debited the amount from their registered credit or debit cards with Uber on completion of a journey. However, travellers are now required to pre-load their wallets before a trip and the fare will be deducted from the online balance once they reach their destinations.

Other competitors like Meru Cabs, Taxi for Sure and OlaCabs enable customers to either pay virtually using online pre-paid wallets or direct cash payments to the taxi drivers. However, Uber is not expected to follow that model.

It is important to note that Uber has begun offering discounts to customers in a bid to compete against its rivals, especially the ones which have larger fleets.

As per a report by The Economic Times, Uber is planning to pour over $400 million into its Indian operations. The taxi providing service is aiming to strengthen its presence, expand into new cities and use it to attract more cab providers to the service. The report comes after Uber’s competitor Ola Cabs got a $210 million boost from Softbank recently.