Over 80 payments apps face an uphill battle to turn the country cashless

Many merchants, especially in rural areas, remain unable or unwilling to accept digital transactions due to network connectivity issues and reluctance to pay charges for low-value transactions

The playing field in rapidly expanding market for digital payments is poised to get more crowded as the country races to catch up with China in squeezing out the use of cash, according to the head of the South Asian nation’s payments network.

That means people will continue to face a bewildering array of payments apps provided by Facebook, Google, Amazon.com and others, in contrast to China where two home-grown technology giants dominate the market.

“India will remain a multiple-player model where the consumer has a choice to continue to use his bank account, and for the last mile can use any