Mobile wallet company Paytm is expected to apply for a payment banking license. According to reports quoting an official of the company, the company will not seek any partnership while initiating this new business. It is estimated that some 18 milliom mobile wallets in India belong to Paytm out of the total of 30 million. RBI rules do not permit cash withdrawals from mobile wallets, something a payment bank will be allowed to offer. A payment bank will be allowed to take deposits of up to Rs 1 lakh. But it will have to invest the money in government securities and cannot lend. Paytm wants to provide the semibanking services especially to mobile phone users, pitting it directly against top telecom providers such as Airtel and Vodafone which have a much deeper and wider distribution network and also offer mobile wallet services.
