1. Merchant payments on an interoperable framework for mobile wallets?
What's the news?
Looking for new avenues of revenue generation and growth, the mobile wallet industry wants to be able to access merchant payments on an interoperable framework and merchant discount rates to be made applicable to them as well.
The industry raised these and other points for the overall growth of the digital payments ecosystem in a note submitted to the Reserve Bank of India last week.
How will this work?
This also makes for a compelling case for consumers to submit all their details to digital wallet providers as only those who have completed full know-your-customer requirements can be given access to the interoperable network, the executive said.
The number of consumers who have submitted their personal details and documents to digital wallet providers to meet RBI’s full KYC requirement is still in low single-digit percentage.
A senior payment company executive said just as banks that issue credit and debit cards are identified as ‘issuing banks’ and those onboarding merchants are known as ‘acquiring banks’, the same theory should apply to digital wallet companies. Read more.
2. Single technology platform for the ministry of defense
What's the news?
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has begun a project to build IT systems that would help streamline operations and take faster decisions as it looks to increase domestic production of arms and equipment for the armed forces.
What's the need?
So far, officials say, lack of a single-technology platform is among the reasons that has affected faster decision making in local procurement and has led India to depend hugely on imports.
The technology platform is also being designed for planners in the military to get a single view of expertise of domestic manufacturers in arms and equipment, helping them shortlist vendors.
The vendors have the provision to file certifications, products, and licences to the defence ministry. Read more.
3. Chinese fashion e-tailers, a cause for concern?
What's the news?
The increasing ubiquity of Chinese fashion e-tailers on social media platforms has prompted some Indian sellers to reach out to the government with complaints of low product quality and lack of compliance, as the wave of Chinese e-commerce players is likely to threaten local sellers.
The All India Online Vendors Association (AIOVA) has written to the consumer affairs ministry, bringing to its notice Chinese platforms such as Shein.com and Club Factory, referring to them as “dangerous not only to the merchant community, but also to the Indian consumer”.
What are the concerns?
The association has said that these e-tailers offer cheap, knock-off goods to consumers, and also raised concerns about the GST compliance of these businesses.
Some industry members also said that some of the Chinese e-tailers have quality issues, and are selling low-quality items with no options for cash on delivery or product returns. The issue was also highlighted by AIOVA. Read more.
4. E-commerce logistics on a high
What's the news?
E-commerce logistics players like Delhivery and Ecom Express witnessed a revenue growth of approximately 40% on an average during FY17 primarily driven by B2C e-commerce shipments even as the online retail sector grew at around 30-35% , signaling a shift in market share in the overall logistics space.
Some of the companies have also been able to shrink their losses owing to scale and asset-utilisation.
How good is their business?
Delhivery posted an approximately 44% increase in total revenues to Rs 751 crore during FY17 from previous year’s Rs 523 crore.
The Tiger Global-backed company’s losses dropped by 21% from Rs 317 crore during FY16 to Rs 249 crore in FY17 even as total expenses shot up to Rs 1,000 crore in FY17 from Rs 840 crore from the previous year, as per the company’s statement of profit and loss.
Ecom Express posted a similar growth in revenue at 37% during FY17 with earning Rs 493 crore in revenues, up from Rs 359 crore the year before. The company also diminished its losses by 24% to Rs 72 crore from Rs 96 crore, as per MCA filings sourced from data-tracking platform Tofler.
XpressBees posted stupendous growth at 122% increase in revenue from Rs 83 crore in FY16 to Rs 185 crore in FY17. Read more.
What's the news?
Looking for new avenues of revenue generation and growth, the mobile wallet industry wants to be able to access merchant payments on an interoperable framework and merchant discount rates to be made applicable to them as well.
The industry raised these and other points for the overall growth of the digital payments ecosystem in a note submitted to the Reserve Bank of India last week.
How will this work?
This also makes for a compelling case for consumers to submit all their details to digital wallet providers as only those who have completed full know-your-customer requirements can be given access to the interoperable network, the executive said.
The number of consumers who have submitted their personal details and documents to digital wallet providers to meet RBI’s full KYC requirement is still in low single-digit percentage.
A senior payment company executive said just as banks that issue credit and debit cards are identified as ‘issuing banks’ and those onboarding merchants are known as ‘acquiring banks’, the same theory should apply to digital wallet companies. Read more.
2. Single technology platform for the ministry of defense
What's the news?
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has begun a project to build IT systems that would help streamline operations and take faster decisions as it looks to increase domestic production of arms and equipment for the armed forces.
What's the need?
So far, officials say, lack of a single-technology platform is among the reasons that has affected faster decision making in local procurement and has led India to depend hugely on imports.
The technology platform is also being designed for planners in the military to get a single view of expertise of domestic manufacturers in arms and equipment, helping them shortlist vendors.
The vendors have the provision to file certifications, products, and licences to the defence ministry. Read more.
3. Chinese fashion e-tailers, a cause for concern?
What's the news?
The increasing ubiquity of Chinese fashion e-tailers on social media platforms has prompted some Indian sellers to reach out to the government with complaints of low product quality and lack of compliance, as the wave of Chinese e-commerce players is likely to threaten local sellers.
The All India Online Vendors Association (AIOVA) has written to the consumer affairs ministry, bringing to its notice Chinese platforms such as Shein.com and Club Factory, referring to them as “dangerous not only to the merchant community, but also to the Indian consumer”.
What are the concerns?
The association has said that these e-tailers offer cheap, knock-off goods to consumers, and also raised concerns about the GST compliance of these businesses.
Some industry members also said that some of the Chinese e-tailers have quality issues, and are selling low-quality items with no options for cash on delivery or product returns. The issue was also highlighted by AIOVA. Read more.
4. E-commerce logistics on a high
What's the news?
E-commerce logistics players like Delhivery and Ecom Express witnessed a revenue growth of approximately 40% on an average during FY17 primarily driven by B2C e-commerce shipments even as the online retail sector grew at around 30-35% , signaling a shift in market share in the overall logistics space.
Some of the companies have also been able to shrink their losses owing to scale and asset-utilisation.
How good is their business?
Delhivery posted an approximately 44% increase in total revenues to Rs 751 crore during FY17 from previous year’s Rs 523 crore.
The Tiger Global-backed company’s losses dropped by 21% from Rs 317 crore during FY16 to Rs 249 crore in FY17 even as total expenses shot up to Rs 1,000 crore in FY17 from Rs 840 crore from the previous year, as per the company’s statement of profit and loss.
Ecom Express posted a similar growth in revenue at 37% during FY17 with earning Rs 493 crore in revenues, up from Rs 359 crore the year before. The company also diminished its losses by 24% to Rs 72 crore from Rs 96 crore, as per MCA filings sourced from data-tracking platform Tofler.
XpressBees posted stupendous growth at 122% increase in revenue from Rs 83 crore in FY16 to Rs 185 crore in FY17. Read more.
