PhonePe set to acquire fintech start-up ZestMoney for about $300 mn

Digital payments firm PhonePe is set to acquire fintech start-up ZestMoney for $200-300 million, according to sources.

The acquisition would help Walmart-owned PhonePe to strengthen its lending services and compete with Google Pay, Paytm, and Amazon Pay in Indian fintech, which is expected to be worth $350 billion by 2026.

“The talks are still going on and the deal is expected to be closed in 2-4 weeks,” said a person familiar with the matter.

ZestMoney, which was founded in 2015, allows customers to pay for products over time. Increasing smartphone use, cheap data plans and online shopping have helped pay-later offerings in the country.