Flipkart signs deal with Axis Bank-owned FreeCharge

Flipkart inks a pact with Axis Bank-owned FreeCharge to expand the user base of its payments arm PhonePe into an open payment platform, said a report.
 
This deal will permit over 45 million Freecharge’s users to utilise their wallet balance on any of PhonePe’s merchant partners, said the report on Moneycontrol.
 
The partnership with PhonePe will reportedly give Freecharge access to over 60,000 merchants including MakeMyTrip, PVR, Cleartrip, FreshMenu, Faasos, Café Coffee Day, Apollo Pharmacy, KFC, Barista, and Spencer’s, over and above the 2 lakh merchants and shops it already has in its network.
 
As per media reports, this pact will also help Flipkart to maintain an edge over Paytm which is also expanding its online marketplace - Paytm Mall.
 
“We are delighted to partner with FreeCharge and offer our customers the option of using their Freecharge wallet inside the PhonePe app. This is in line with our vision of making PhonePe India’s first truly open payments platform, where customers can use any and all payment instruments of their choice,” Hemant Gala, Head of banking products & strategic partnerships for PhonePe, told Moneycontrol.
 
Paytm is not available as a payment option on any of the Flipkart network which has exclusive cashback partnership with Axis Bank.