 "Walmart's PhonePe set to acquire WealthDesk, OpenQ for about $70 mn")
As it looks to scale up its financial and wealth management services, Walmart-owned digital payments firm PhonePe is set to acquire wealth management firms WealthDesk for about $50 million and OpenQ for around $20 million, according to people familiar with the matter.
Earlier this year, PhonePe applied to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for a mutual fund (MF) licence, joining rivals in the race to set up an asset management company (AMC).
PhonePe confirmed that it is acquiring WealthDesk and OpenQ, but didn’t reveal the value of the transaction.
“PhonePe is acquiring WealthDesk. The founder and the entire team will be working as a part of the PhonePe group and both the platforms will remain independent,” a PhonePe spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that WealthDesk will remain open to all players, and founder Ujjwal Jain will continue to oversee it.
“PhonePe is also acquiring OpenQ, subject to necessary regulatory approvals,” the spokesperson said. “OpenQ is a smart beta wealth management platform, which designs investment strategies and optimal portfolio construction advice. Post-acquisition, OpenQ will be instrumental in creating the Wealth Ecosystem for the PhonePe Group.”
After digital payments, financial services have become the next big battleground for players such as PhonePe, Amazon, Google and Paytm. The size of the Indian financial services market could touch around $340 billion in the next few years.
PhonePe forayed into financial services in 2017 by allowing the trading of gold on its platform, and later silver. It has since introduced several mutual fund and insurance products like tax-saving funds, liquid funds, international travel insurance, and life insurance.
In the future, PhonePe expects almost half of its revenue to come from financial services. The company also plans to tap the merchant lending space and stock broking, apart from its aim of building an asset management company.
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