South Korean digital wallet True Balance clocks $100 mn GMV in India

South Korean digital wallet app True Balance said it has clocked Rs 700 crore ($100 million) in transaction amount, a growth of 8.3 times from 2016-17 to 2018-19. 

The app, which began as a mobile balance-checking and top-up tool, accumulated 95 million transactions in total, a company statement said.

“A major factor that has contributed to this growth is our financial products such as gift card, True Pay Later. We are witnessing a monthly growth of 50% through our unique services like one-tap balance check, one-tap bill payment of electricity, mobile and DTH,” said Charlie Lee, chief executive officer, True Balance.

The app, operated and owned by Balancehero India Pvt. Ltd, has 21 million recharge users.

The company’s financial product, True Pay Later, targets one billion unbanked users in India and claims to have facilitated over 0.5 million transactions so far. The service was launched in March this year, which offers users a 14-day period to pay for any transaction on the app.

“The government’s Digital India step has further helped us in digital payments’ acceptance among the masses. We will continue expanding the financial service in the country and enabling unbanked users to become digital-friendly. We are committed to continue investment in our existing business and make India a financially-inclusive nation,” Lee added.

True Balance was founded in September 2014 by Lee, who is an alumnus of the University of Chicago. The company’s India operations were launched in April 2016. The Korean entrepreneur had a previous stint in India when he led country operations for Internet streaming media delivery firm Real Networks in 2002.

True Balance plans to launch commerce, where users can purchase mobile phones, railway and bus tickets with an option to pay in instalments. The company is also in the process of getting non-banking financial company (NBFC) licence and expected to kick off the service within the next few months, the statement said.

In the mobile wallet segment, True Balance competes with the likes of Paytm, MobiKwik and Flipkart’s PhonePe, besides Amazon Pay. Market leader Paytm counts SoftBank as its largest investor.

Last month, TechCircle reported that the SoftBank-backed True Balance had raised an undisclosed amount from private sector lender ICICI Bank.

Last year in April, it raised $23 million (Rs 150 crore) in a Series B2 funding round.

True Balance had raised its Series A funding round in March 2016 from SoftBank Ventures.