Suvidhaa Infoserve buys m-POS startup AasaanPay

Suvidhaa Infoserve Pvt Ltd, a company that provides internet-based payment collection services for various industries, has acquired mobile point of sale (POS) startup Aasaanpay Solutions Pvt Ltd that operates under the brand AasaanPay, for an undisclosed amount.

The acquisition includes AasaanPay's mPOS (mobile Point Of Sale) technology platform along with IP and the core technology team led by CTO Pruthvi Sabbu.

The acquisition is expected to help Suvidhaa fast-track its efforts to reach small merchants, especially in rural areas, AasaanPay said in the statement.

Suvidhaa Infoserve can use AasaanPay's technology to tap into the 150 million cards issued by the Indian government under the Jan-Dhan Yojana and another 50 crore debit cards issued by various banks.

"The acquisition will lead to a new customer experience, enable instantaneous conversions for service providers such as e-commerce companies, and will also cut out the hassles of collecting cash for various businesses. The technology will help small time retailers – who are not yet entirely connected to the debit and credit transactions," the company said in the statement.

Started by Sainath Gupta, Pruthvi Sabbu and Srikanth in 2011, AasaanPay's technology helps carry out transactions via smartphone instead of the conventional PoS machine. Currently, AasaanPay is privately held and funded as well as managed by Tvarita Capital, an early stage growth fund.

Suvidhaa Infoserve provides internet-based payment collection services for various industries, including mobile telephone services, electric power, gas, insurance and e-commerce, with 80,000 retail locations across India.

It appoints local neighbourhood stores, including grocery stores, medical stores, travel agents and cyber cafes, as its franchisees to distribute the services to consumers. The company was founded in 2007 by Paresh Rajde with angel funding from billionaire Shapoorji Pallonji Mistry, the largest shareholder of Tata Group's holding firm Tata Sons. It went on to raise venture funding from Norwest Venture Partners, Reliance Venture Asset Management and IFC.

In late 2011, it got on board Japan's Mitsui & Co Ltd, which invested $12 million (Rs 60 crore back then), taking its total funding to around $25 million.

It currently employs over 200 people.

Recently, Suvidhaa Infoserve elevated Rahul Bhamburkar as CEO. Bhamburkar succeeded Haresh Bathija who was CEO from October 2012.