Taking the ongoing Indian digital payments fight a notch above, Gurgaon-based online recharge and digital mobile wallet firm MobiKwik has received reinforcements worth $50 million for its cash chest, in a round led by Japan’s GMO Payment Gateway and popular Taiwanese semiconductor company MediaTek.
Multiple reports state, that the series C round was closed last month, along with the participation from the company’s existing investors Sequoia Capital and Asia-focused hedge fund Tree Line Asia. We have contacted Mobikwik for the same, and will update this story with the respect to the timing of this round’s closure.
The company has not disclosed any further information related to this fundraising deal. And if you were wondering, post money valuation is also under wraps. Bipin Preet Singh, Mobikwik’s founder and CEO, told The Tech Portal,
We are very excited to live upto the investors’ expectations and raise the funding
According to a statement from GMO Payment Gateway, the company has made investment through GMO Global Payment Fund, a $15-million fund, backed by major financial institutions, including, credit card issuers and acquiring banks. A statement released by the company said:
The use of mobile wallets, which enable payments for purchases at online shops, utilities, and physical stores through the use of a smartphone or other type of mobile phone, is becoming a standard alternative method of payment to cash, and the size of this market is expected to grow to $6.6 billion by 2020.
This funding round is an indicator of investors’ surging interest in India’s mobile-only future. As people get to e-commerce to purchase more of their, mobile wallets have become quintessential to that growth.
Last year, Mobikwik had raised $25 Million in its Series B round from Tree Line, with participation of Cisco Investments, American Express and Sequoia Capital. Later, the company also received additional $6.6 Million, in a combination of both – debt financing and private equity from Sequoia Capital and Tree Line Asia.
Talking about this round, Singh further added,
MobiKwik is a dominating player in the Indian mobile payments space and continues its consistent growth trajectory while staying true to its DNA of rapid product innovation and capital efficiency. Our valuation too has significantly increased.
Competing against the likes of FreeCharge Wallet, Oxigen Wallet and the current leader — the Alibaba-backed Paytm — MobiKwik recently launched a new feature called Explore Nearby, which enables discovery of neighbourhood stores, restaurants, cafes, etc. that accept wallet payments.
