State-run refiner Bharat Petroleum Corp. Ltd (BPCL) said on Friday it has signed definitive agreements to acquire a 21% stake in payment technology solutions provider FINO PayTech Ltd for Rs 251 crore ($37.6 million) in cash.
Mumbai-based FINO was one of 11 companies to receive the Reserve Bank of India’s in-principle approval to start a payments bank last year.
BPCL said the deal, along with the payments bank to be launched by FINO, will help the refiner provide customized offerings to different segments of customers and drive its fuel and non-fuel business.
The company said it plans to use its extensive fuel distribution and marketing network to participate in the financial inclusion initiative in the country. It added that it is rolling out various customer service initiatives in its core retail fuels business using new technology solutions.
The transaction is likely to be completed by 31 December 2016.
Founded in 2006, FINO is a financial inclusion software solutions and services company. It has received funding from multiple investors. Its key investors include Intel Capital, IFC, Headland Capital, Blackstone and ICICI Bank. It is not clear if any of the investors are partly or fully exiting in the deal.
FINO recorded net profit of Rs 9.99 crore on gross revenue from operations of Rs 218.95 crore for the year through March 2015.
BPCL is the second refiner to get into a payments bank company. Reliance Industries Ltd, India’s biggest private-sector refiner, was among the 11 companies to receive the RBI’s nod to start a payments bank. Reliance has tied up with State Bank of India for the venture.
Three of the 11 companies which received the RBI’s go-ahead, however, have dropped their plan to set up a payments bank. These are Tech Mahindra Ltd, which pulled out in May, as well as Cholamandalam group and Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd’s Dilip Shanghvi. The others left in the fray are Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd, Airtel M Commerce Services Ltd, Department of Posts, National Securities Depository Ltd, Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma and Vodafone m-pesa Ltd.
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