Adani Group to expand into e-commerce and payment ventures

Adani Group, an Indian multinational conglomerate, is in talks to expand into e-commerce and payments as it builds a digital company to compete with Google and Reliance Industries in the world’s most populous country, according to Financial Times. Despite owning interests in a number of companies, the Adani Group is still relatively unknown in consumer-facing industries.

Plans to boost consumer companies were announced at the same time that ports-to-power conglomerate led by billionaire Gautam Adani considered investing $84 billion in infrastructure over the following ten years. If authorized, the group will join India’s rapidly growing digital payments market and take on established players like Walmart-backed PhonePe and Google Pay.

Discussions regarding credit card and payment license

According to reports, the Adani Group is thinking about requesting a license to use the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), the nation’s public digital payments network. In order to provide its clients with a co-branded Adani credit card, the group is also in negotiations with banks. Adani wants to expand his empire by entering rapidly expanding consumer-facing markets. Because of his development of a vast network of ports, airports, and power facilities, he is now the second richest man in Asia. The company is in talks with banks to finalize plans for a co-branded Adani credit card and is currently considering applying for a license to operate on India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI), a public digital payments network.

Push for ONDC

It is said that the Adani Group is in talks to join the e-commerce market via the government-supported Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). Businesses can avoid investing in developing their own e-commerce platforms or payment systems by utilizing ONDC’s interoperable networks. The company’s 2022 launch of the Adani One App is expected to offer the ONDC services. Currently, the Adani One App allows users to book hotels and flights. Initially, the services will target the company’s gas and electricity customers, providing discounts and cashback to encourage them to use the app. If approved, these services will be available via Adani One, the company’s consumer app, which was released in late 2022 and presently provides travel-related services like hotel and flight reservations.

Many people already use popular UPI-based payment apps like Google Pay and Walmart-backed PhonePe, while domestic companies like Paytm and Tata offer grocery and fashion shopping via ONDC. “Interoperable” networks free businesses from investing in proprietary payment systems or e-commerce platforms by enabling them to transact through other providers.

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Adani Group’s Adani One App

As the Financial Times reported, people with knowledge of the situation stated that the company’s e-commerce and payment services would initially cater to its existing customer base, which they estimated to number in the hundreds of millions when taking into consideration passengers using its airports and users of its gas and electricity.

With its consumer push, Adani hopes to grow and incorporate more aspects of its business empire, including the joint venture Adani Wilmar, which sells staple foods like rice and wheat, and the broadcaster NDTV, which it acquired in 2022. The group also intends to launch a think tank with a focus on politics, energy, and climate change.

The report cites sources stating that the company’s e-commerce and payment services will first cater to its current clientele. Users could accrue loyalty points by paying their bills on time or making duty-free purchases, for instance, and use those points to shop online. Reaching out to these current customers would give Adani “a platform to move into much larger areas,” according to a source.

India’s payments market

According to a report by Mordor Intelligence, the payments market in India is predicted to grow from $357.51 billion in 2024 to $814.43 billion in 2029. According to data from April, PhonePe holds the largest market share of any UPI app in India with 48.9%, followed by Google Pay with 37.7%. According to the report, the group is also in discussions to provide online shopping via Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), a public e-commerce platform supported by the Indian government. The report also stated that if the services are approved, they will be accessible via Adani One, the company’s consumer app, which was released in December 2022.

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