Adani group has big plans to further diversify its empire into the fast growing payments ecosystem as well as the e-commerce industry. The group is likely to apply for a licence to operate on UPI and is also discussing possibilities of providing online shopping services through the Open Network for Digital Commerce or ONDC, as per a report by Financial Times. The ports to power conglomerate is also reportedly in talks with banks to finalise plans for the launch of a co-branded credit card.
This comes as the power to ports conglomerate is looking to diversify its empire into fast-growing consumer-facing markets.
It is to be noted that ONDC, government-supported public e-commerce platform and UPI form a part of India's much coveted offering, the digital stack. With ONDC’s interoperable networks, companies do not need to invest in their own proprietary payments or e-commerce platforms. As per the report, once the plans are finalised, Adani could offer its services through Adani One, which was launched in 2022.
“It’s our collective effort to build a digital twin that will eventually parallel our traditional businesses,” Nitin Sethi, senior vice-president and chief digital officer, consumer businesses, at Adani Group, wrote in a LinkedIn post in December 2022.
As per Financial Times, the company’s ecommerce and payments offerings would initially target existing users of its businesses including gas and electricity customers, as well as travellers at its airports. Users would be able to acquire loyalty points through bill payments or duty-free purchases and use them for online shopping.
This push comes over a year after Hindenburg Research accused the group of market manipulation and fraud, prompting a $150 billion rout in the group’s listed stocks.
Also watch: Adani Enterprises stock erases all the losses made after the Hindenburg report