Delhi High Court Seeks Reply From RBI, SEBI, NPCI On Plea Seeking Regulation Of GooglePay, AmazonPay, PhonePe Etc

The petition, which has been filed by an applied economist, Reshmi P Bhaskaran, seeks the High Court to direct inter alia that these "TechFin" companies be allowed to operate in the country only after having their registered offices here, their necessary approval/ registration from the appropriate financial regulators, the formulation of a strict framework for their entry and operation through any mode (including partnerships with existing financial entities), and their mandatory statutory audit.

A bench of Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan also issued notice to the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) and the Pension Fund Regulatory and Development Authority (PFRDA) seeking their stand on the plea.

The petition, filed through Advocate Deepak Prakash, alleges that though in the current UPI (United Payments Interface) regime GooglePay, AmazonPay and PhonePe control more than 85% market share, they do not require any authorization from RBI for their entry or operation and are allowed to operate without any supervision from the apex regulatory authority.

The petition also raises concern that these companies are not held accountable to similar standards as other licensed entities/ intermediaries and that if they are not given an 'even playing field' authorized intermediaries will lose business.

Currently, NPCI is the sole authority owning and regulating a pan-India digital payments network. There has also been news that the RBI is looking to bolster digital payments competitions with National Umbrella Entities (NUE). NUEs, which are umbrella entities for digital payments, will have the same powers and responsibilities as the NPCI.

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