The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on February 15 released detailed lists of entities allowed to function as payment aggregators, entities whose applications are still under process, and those whose applications have been returned. Of the total 139 entities: Amazon Pay, Google, Pine Labs, IndiaIdeas.com (BillDesk), Cashfree, Zomato, and Reliance are among the 54 entities that are currently allowed to carry out online payment aggregation services, although some of them are not allowed to onboard new merchants. IRCTC and Ola Financial Services are among the 57 entities that have had their applications returned and cannot operate as payment aggregators. Tata, Zoho, and SBI Payment Services are among the 28 entities stuck in between, awaiting final authorisation before they can operate as payment aggregators. Why does this matter: This is the first time RBI is revealing the current status of all the entities that have applied for permission. "While the exercise of scrutiny of applications of PAs is an ongoing process, for the purpose of disseminating information and ensuring greater transparency, the list of entities who have submitted applications to RBI seeking authorisation to act as online PAs under the PSS Act along with the current status of their application as on February 15, 2023, is published, which will be updated on a fortnightly basis," RBI's notification states. Recap: who are payment aggregators (PAs): "PAs are entities that facilitate e-commerce sites and merchants to accept various payment instruments from the customers for completion of their payment obligations without the need for merchants to…
