In Brief: NPCI to take UPI global; video streaming service Viu to shutter India operations

Reserve Bank of India governor Shaktikanta Das said that the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) is setting up a subsidiary to export the unified payment interface (UPI) for governments and central banks interested in implementing similar payment options in their countries, The Economic Times reported. Recently, Google had recommended that the US Federal Reserve Board adopt a similar payment infrastructure as India, the report said. The report revealed that Google Pay commands over 35% market share in India, followed by Walmart-owned PhonePe. 

Viu to shut operations in India

Hong Kong-based video streaming service Viu, owned by information and communications technology company PCCW, has decided to end operations in India, The Economic Times reported. The decision was communicated to its employees on Monday at an all-hands meet conducted by Arun Prakash, chief strategy office of Viu. Employees were asked to refrain from coming to the office from the next day. Employees are also given a three-month severance package, it added. 

Facebook tracks in-store shopping, targets users with ads

Social media giant Facebook has partnered with top retailers who share data with the social network on what customers are buying in retail stores. Facebook, in turn, is targeting those customers with specific advertisements, news agency IANS reported. Retail companies send names, phone numbers and email addresses attached to products people have purchased, to Facebook, the report said. The report revealed that Facebook is able to track what customers buy in stores and target those customers with advertisements. Facebook said this is standard practice for the industry.

Mastercard selects BharatPe for its Start Path programme

Global payments technology company Mastercard has selected Delhi-based payments firm BharatPe along with six other startups for its Start Path programme. The programme is part of the Mastercard accelerate global initiative. It has a portfolio of 220 startups and picks about 40 startups from a pool of 1,500 applicants annually. BharatPe claims to process over 12 lakh transactions daily.