Axis Bank joins the ONDC bandwagon, plans to launch ecommerce platform after PhonePe’s Pincode
Axis Bank is reportedly planning to launch a consumer-facing ecommerce platform on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), as it jumps on the bandwagon of the network.
According to a report from MoneyControl, Axis Bank is set to launch a new ecommerce platform under its Grab Deals segment. Initially, the platform will offer groceries on the ONDC, but will eventually expand to include other segments.
As per the report, the ecommerce platform has been designed and will go live soon. It further stated that initially, the platform will be launched in select cities.
Axis Bank declined to comment on the matter.
It is worth noting that Axis Bank owns around 8% stake in ONDC. The bank is currently revamping the entire Grab Deals platform.
“The ONDC for groceries will still remain integrated even after Grab Deals goes live on app stores and going forward, the company might launch a separate app for the ONDC platform, too,” a source was quoted as saying.
Just a few days ago, fintech unicorn PhonePe introduced a new application called Pincode on the ONDC, which aims to focus on hyperlocal commerce. This development follows closely on the heels of that announcement.
The ONDC platform was launched for beta testing in September of last year and has been dubbed as the UPI of the ecommerce industry. The platform is aimed at democratizing the ecommerce segment and is a government initiative.
The ONDC platform, supported by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), has been progressively expanding its reach to new cities and pin codes. Just last month, it entered the mobility space by partnering with Bengaluru-based auto booking app ‘Namma Yatri’.
According to ONDC CEO T Koshy, approximately 380 farmer producer organisations (FPOs) are at different stages of integration with the platform on the supplier side, with 80 FPOs already live on the platform. This was stated recently.
Among the companies and startups operating buyer-side apps on the ONDC are Paytm, PhonePe, IDFC, Mystore, Craftsvilla, and Spice Money.
It is worth noting that the ONDC platform is funded by a number of banks, including State Bank of India (SBI), Axis Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank, and Punjab National Bank.
