WhatsApp Pay set for phased roll out in India; granted NPCI permission

NPCI nod for phased launch comes 2 years after trial run

Facebook-owned messaging service WhatsApp has secured regulatory approval for launching its digital payment platform — WhatApp Pay — in a phased manner, close to two years after the US-based company’s pilot run.
 
The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) granted permission to the California-headquartered company on Thursday to operate WhatsApp Pay, which will cater to 10 million users in India during the first phase, a person in the know said.
 
The NPCI approval follows the Reserve Bank of India’s go-ahead. WhatsApp has assured the RBI and NPCI that it will comply with the data localisation norms, a source