India’s largest payment and commerce platform Paytm, on Tuesday, announced partnership with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to enable cashless transaction on highway tolls across the country.
The Paytm FASTag will allow commuters to pass through 350 toll plazas covering 55,000 kms, without having to stop. The vehicle tag employs RFID technology to allow cashless toll fee payment with the Paytm wallet. Paytm aims to collect over Rs. 1,800 crore in toll charges in the coming months, said Kiran Vasireddy, Senior Vice President, Paytm.
He said cash transactions slows down traffic at important toll plazas as attendants and motorists are left grappling with the hassles of dealing in loose change. The roll-out of Paytm-enabled FASTag will come as a relief to both commuters and toll plaza attendants and help towards the national cause of saving fuel.
With this move, Paytm is inching closer to its vision of making cashless transactions a way of life across India. This will propel India towards becoming a cashless economy in the truest sense of the word, he added.
Paytm is currently aiming to get a larger market share in O2O categories by reaching every nook and corner of the country. Paytm customers can now pay at petrol pumps, grocery outlets, restaurants and coffee shops, multiplexes, local tea or vegetable vendors and even the newspaper vendor who will prefer Paytm because of its seamless payment solutions.
With current user base of more than 12.5 crore, Paytm plans to bring half a billion Indians to the main stream of economy using mobile payments, commerce and soon-to-be-launched payment banking services.
Consumer brand of India’s leading mobile Internet company One97 Communications, the New Delhi-headquartered Paytm’s investors include Ant Financials (AliPay), Alibaba Group, SAIF Partners, Sapphire Venture and Silicon Valley Bank.
Do remember to get free stock market tips in your inbox by filling your email in the subscription box.
