WhatsApp is introducing prepaid phone recharges in India to encourage more users to make transactions within the app, despite its challenges in a payments market led by Walmart’s PhonePe and Google Pay. On Thursday, WhatsApp announced a partnership with fintech firm PayU to enable users to top up mobile numbers for major operators like Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone Idea directly within the app. This feature will roll out to all WhatsApp users in India over the next two weeks, as confirmed by PayU to TechCrunch.
With over 500 million users in India and payment services launched in 2020, WhatsApp remains a minor player in the country’s digital payments space, heavily influenced by the government-supported Unified Payments Interface. Despite processing over 130 million transactions in March, WhatsApp trails far behind competitors such as PhonePe and Google Pay, which processed more than 10.5 billion and 7.5 billion transactions, respectively, during the same period.
This gap persists even after the NPCI lifted onboarding restrictions on WhatsApp Pay in late 2024, allowing the service to reach its full user base in India following phased rollouts. However, since early 2025, WhatsApp’s payment usage has increased significantly, more than doubling its UPI transactions from about 61 million in January 2025, according to NPCI data. Meanwhile, PhonePe and Google Pay grew by around 30% and 20%, respectively, maintaining the majority share of UPI transaction volumes.
The introduction of prepaid recharges is part of WhatsApp’s strategy to broaden payment and service options within the app in India. Users can already pay bills, book metro tickets, and access various government services via chat-based interfaces, as WhatsApp aims to expand engagement beyond messaging.
WhatsApp has also added a rupee (₹) icon on its home screen, making it easier for users to access payment features, including mobile recharges and peer-to-peer transfers. Ravi Garg, director of business messaging at Meta India, stated that these updates aim to simplify everyday transactions within WhatsApp, as the company seeks to integrate more utility into the app. This move underscores Meta’s strategy to increase engagement beyond messaging, while still facing challenges in competing with established digital payment leaders.