India’s offline merchant payments market is rapidly becoming the next major growth frontier for fintech companies, and MobiKwik is preparing for aggressive expansion after receiving in-principle approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) for its Payment Aggregator-Physical (PA-P) licence.
Key Highlights
- MobiKwik secured RBI approval to aggressively expand offline merchant payments infrastructure across India by FY28.
- Company targets 10X merchant business growth amid rising offline fintech monetisation opportunities nationwide.
The regulatory approval marks a significant milestone for the Gurugram-based fintech firm as it strengthens its presence in India’s fast-growing merchant acquiring ecosystem and positions itself for 10X growth in its offline merchant payments business by FY28.
The company said the new licence will allow it to significantly deepen its merchant payment infrastructure and scale physical payment acceptance solutions across India, particularly in underpenetrated semi-urban and rural markets where digital payment adoption is accelerating.
Offline Merchant Payments Emerging as Key Fintech Battleground
India’s merchant payments market is increasingly attracting fintech players seeking monetisation opportunities beyond consumer UPI transactions.
According to estimates by Redseer, the country’s merchant payments gross merchandise value opportunity is expected to reach USD 1.8 trillion to USD 2 trillion by FY28, driven by digital adoption among small merchants, organised retail, and fuel retail networks.
Unlike consumer-facing digital payments, which largely operate on zero merchant discount rate (MDR) rails, offline merchant acquiring offers significantly stronger revenue potential through MDR income, subscription fees, device rentals, and value-added financial services.
Industry players are also increasingly leveraging merchant transaction data to expand credit underwriting, lending distribution, and embedded financial product offerings, making offline acquiring a strategic growth engine for fintech profitability.
MobiKwik Plans Major Merchant Network Expansion
MobiKwik currently supports 4.9 million merchants through payment solutions including UPI QR codes, Soundbox devices, and electronic data capture (EDC) machines.
The company plans to sharply increase merchant deployments over the next 18 to 24 months, with a strong focus on:
- Small and medium businesses
- Fuel and oil retail outlets
- Organised retail chains
- Tier II and Tier III city merchants
Bipin Preet Singh said offline merchant payments are emerging as one of India’s strongest fintech growth drivers.
"Offline merchant payments are becoming one of the most powerful growth engines within India’s digital economy, especially across underpenetrated markets beyond urban India. This approval strengthens our ability to scale merchant payment infrastructure nationwide and positions us for 10X merchant business growth by FY28," Singh said.
The company added that the PA-P approval reinforces its ability to build compliant, secure, and scalable payment infrastructure in partnership with leading banks and financial institutions.
RBI Approval Strengthens Full-Stack Fintech Strategy
The latest licence by the RBI further strengthens MobiKwik’s broader ambition to establish itself as a full-stack fintech platform serving both consumers and merchants.
The company had earlier secured the Payment Aggregator-Online (PA-O) licence through its subsidiary Zaakpay, giving it regulatory clearances across both online and offline payment ecosystems.
Also Read: MobiKwik Gets RBI NBFC Approval, Advances to Full-Stack Fintech Model
Founded in 2009 by Bipin Preet Singh and Upasana Taku, MobiKwik now serves over 189 million registered users and more than 4.8 million merchants across India.
The platform has also expanded beyond payments into broader financial services, offering credit products, fixed deposits, mutual funds, insurance, and digital gold investment options.
MobiKwik said it currently commands around 20% market share in prepaid payment instrument wallet gross transaction value as of March 2026, underlining its strong position in India’s evolving digital financial ecosystem.
As India’s digital commerce infrastructure expands rapidly, analysts believe offline merchant acquiring could become one of the most valuable monetisation layers for fintech companies seeking long-term profitability and market leadership.
