New Delhi [India], March 16 (ANI/BusinessWire India): Mahila Money, Visa and Transcorp have teamed up to launch the Mahila Money Prepaid Card, a product created for women entrepreneurs to use digital payments more effectively. The partnership leverages the deep expertise of Visa, the global leader in payments, Transcorp PPI, and the highly engaged community of Mahila Money.
The Mahila Money Prepaid Card, in partnership with Visa, is designed with the needs of digital entrepreneurs, small business owners and women in mind. The card bridges the gap for community members who want the convenience of a bank account with added flexibility, safety and convenience. This collaboration will pave the way to economic freedom and financial inclusion for millions of women entrepreneurs.
"India is witnessing unprecedented adoption of digital financial products and mainstreaming of entrepreneurship," Mahila Money Founder Sairee Chahal said. "As an organization committed to helping women succeed and build their financial and social capital, the Mahila Money Prepaid Card is a small but big step in the right direction. We need to design products that are simple, effective and trusted, as many women use the internet and payments to achieve their financial aspirations. We believe that this partnership with Visa offers us the opportunity to create highly customized products for women entrepreneurs, a highly engaged and fast-growing segment of digital and financial services users."
"At Visa, we believe it is our mission to work with our partners to uplift everyone-especially in India. We have a long history of supporting women entrepreneurs, a fast-growing yet underserved segment, whether through the iFundWomen and Visa grants program or coaching women micro-entrepreneurs across India on digital payments," said Vice President and Head of Business Development at Visa India Sujai Raina. "We are thus proud to partner with Mahila Money in the company's incredible journey to support women entrepreneurs with the Mahila Money Visa Prepaid Card-a customized offering that will empower female small business owners to embed secure, digital payments and take their enterprises to new heights."
According to the latest survey by the All-India Debt and Investment Survey (AIDIS), although 80.7 per cent of women in rural areas and 81 per cent in urban areas have bank accounts, research indicates that 55 per cent of women still don't actively use their bank accounts. YouGov's latest survey revealed that close to two-thirds of urban Indian women used digital modes of payments, but less than one-third leveraged internet banking.
"We are honoured to power Mahila Money, which harnesses the potential of two of India's most promising elements: women and fintech," said Head of PPI Division at Transcorp Ayan Agarwal. "As India's premier non-bank card issuer, Transcorp takes pride in enabling financial independence for Indian women, and continuously strives to deliver success to its fintech partners through the optimization of stakeholder alignment."
With easy and hassle-free access to loans already available to women entrepreneurs in India through Mahila Money, the prepaid card product will augment that experience, as it aims to catalyze financial adoption for an underserved segment.
Salient features and benefits of the Mahila Money Prepaid Card:
* The card makes it easy for women entrepreneurs to collect payments digitally for their businesses and helps boost their working capital, as loans can be transferred directly into the card.
* Users are offered incentives, rewards, and cashback from the Mahila Money ecosystem of partners.
* The card is useful for women who may not operate their bank accounts actively but want to transact digitally for their businesses and expenses.
* First-time digital entrepreneurs, who are wary of using their bank accounts to set up online storefronts or collect payments will find the use of the card very easy.
* A fully digital product, the Mahila Money Prepaid Card is hassle-free, secure and protects user privacy, especially for women who are seeking independent use of financial products for their business.
* A physical copy of the card is also available upon request, in addition to the digital card that will be available by default.
* Transcorp, a 27-year-old Reserve Bank of India regulated PPI license holder, is powering the cards as India's first non-bank co-brand offering on the Visa network.
Launched six months ago as a full-stack financial services platform for women, Mahila Money has witnessed growth of over 250 times since its introduction, as women in the community continue to adopt products and services designed exclusively for Indian women.
Mahila Money offers loans to women entrepreneurs building their businesses and products that meet working capital needs and productive loans for employment, entrepreneurship and growth opportunities. The Mahila Money community is an actively engaged platform for women built to support financial literacy and entrepreneurship, and provide resources to women to succeed in life.
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