WallWrites

We have noted the model of PhonePe, Google Tez and Paytm, whenever there are incentives or cashbacks, the transaction volumes pick up. This is another behavioural change,u201d said a top government official who is aware of the development. The person did not wish to be named. The share of BHIM in total UPI transactions has dropped to 5.75% in February from 40.5% in August last year, according to the latest data from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which tracks digital transactions in the country. The official said the move to offer cashbacks and incentives is also to encourage more transactions on the BHIM platform and reduce usage of cash. For this, the incentives for merchants for using BHIM-Aadhaar platform will be significantly increased to 0.5% of the transaction value upto Rs 10,000 against the earlier 0.25% of the transaction value of just Rs 2,000. The government admits that the offtake of the earlier scheme for merchants has been low (just a few lak...

Jobs in the blockchain sector are in high demand in India and Bengaluru leads in terms of opportunities in this sector, says a report. According to data from leading global job site Indeed, Bengaluru is the leading city for those seeking job opportunities in the blockchain sector, with over 36 per cent of all the blockchain job postings in India. It is followed by Mumbai, Hyderabad, Pune and Chennai, making up the top five destinations for blockchain careers in the country. The report further noted that New Delhi and surrounding regions such as Gurugram, Noida, and Mohali also see a share of job postings in the sector. However, the volume does not compare to their southern counterparts, it noted. “Technology hubs like Bengaluru and Hyderabad continue to lead, while the national capital region is also seeing a fair share of interest in the sector. With the global market for blockchain-related products and services is expected to reach USD 7.7 billion in 2022, there are sure...

Cos More Cautious This Time “We are also strengthening the technology and product functions significantly and plan to increase headcount by about 25%,” Hari said. Tech-enabled logistics company Rivigo, which recently  raised $50 million from Warburg Pincus and SAIF Partners , at a post-money valuation estimated at $1 billion, is planning to hire 2,500 people across functions in 2018, which includes 500 engineers and the rest in sales and operations. “One of our biggest focus areas this year will be on building India’s best technology and AI (artificial intelligence) team. We are looking at hiring 500 top engineers from across the world for our technology team this year with a dedicated AI team that will work on futuristic AI applications in logistics,” said Gazal Kalra, co-founder, Rivigo. “Startups are once again in a hiring mode, but this time it is being driven by a clear business case and real business need,” said CK Guruprasad, a consultant at Spencer Stuart. “It is ...

Researchers are exploring possible impacts of developing robots that are driven by Artificial Intelligence. Developing robots that have a mind of their own can automate a number of real-world situations. A team of researchers from the University of Texas, Austin is incorporating AI into machines. These systems can learn themselves and operate in the home, workplace and even the sports field. If these robots can deal with real-world situations, we can soon have intelligent robots that you must have seen in science fiction movies. The fictional representations of intelligence robots are in the minds of global users for over 50 years now. The manufacturing sector has been the biggest beneficiary of robotic technologies. The robots that can carry out preordained and repetitive tasks can solve a number of problems. But these robots are not capable of dealing with real-world situations. Even the simplest tasks that can be unpredictable need human interaction to solve. Resea...

After months of anticipation,  WhatsApp  rolled out its payments feature to select users across the country to much enthusiasm this week, providing a strong boost to India’s  digital payments  ecosystem. But that didn’t almost happen because of the company’s foreign origin. Turns out, this was WhatsApp’s second endeavour to enter India’s payments market. Last year, the messaging app, the largest in India, tried to partner with a private bank in the country to develop a digital wallet app to facilitate payments on its platform. That was when it ran into a reluctant Reserve Bank of India. The regulator was not ready to allow a foreign entity to enter India’s digital payments space, according to multiple stakeholders ET spoke with to piece together the story behind WhatsApp payments. “Non-bank entities applying for authorisation shall be a company incorporated in India and registered under the Companies Act 1956 / Companies Act 2013,” read  RBI ’s master gui...