FinTech Platform Tide partnered with Transcorp to roll out RuPay-powered expense cards
Plans to launch other payment and business services later this year
Tide, the UK’s leading SMB-focused business finance platform that began operations in India in 2020, announced today that it has partnered with Transcorp International Limited, a 27-year-old Reserve Bank of India (RBI) regulated Authorized Dealer Category II and perpetual Prepaid Payment Instrument (PPI) licensee, to launch co-branded prepaid cards (Tide Expense Card) as an entry-level product. This roll-out stems from Tide’s expansion strategy in India, its first international market outside the UK, and a mainstay in its global ambitions.
Tide will offer payment services to small businesses across India, starting with a Tide Business Account, accompanied by a Tide Expense Card. These Tide Expense cards will be offered in partnership with Transcorp powered by RuPay. Other payment and business services will follow later this year. The partnership leverages the expertise of RuPay, India’s indigenous payment network, Transcorp’s long-standing reputation and Tide’s vast experience with SMEs in the UK, to help small businesses in India save time and money.
Commenting on the partnership, Oliver Prill, CEO, Tide, said, “launching Tide’s financial platform in India has been our priority since we announced our international expansion. We are pleased to partner with Transcorp as we embark on the next leg of Tide’s journey, to serve the 64 million and growing SMEs in the Indian market. With Transcorp, we are ready to begin our first product offering of Tide India, to build the best possible service to help SME owners save time and money. ”
Users will be able to activate and manage the Tide Business Account and Tide Expense Card through the Tide app, which will also be used to load money, collect payments and check expenses, among other services.
Kumar Shekhar, VP, Tide (India)said, “We at Tide want to support entrepreneurs on their journey and believe we are in a strong position to do just that. As we scale up in India, we will expand our product offering for small businesses looking to take it big step in starting a business – whether as a contractor, freelancer, sole trader or small business owner. Transcorp is a great partner for Tide, with a good reputation as an issuer for co-branded prepaid instruments. Transcorp has already shown success with its partners , and Tide is excited to be on this famous list. ”
The needs of small and medium-sized enterprises globally are largely universal, with wasted time on business and administrative tasks as a central theme. The tide exists to fix that problem. Tide has developed the right approach and a mix of services to meet the different needs of small businesses. In the next year, Tide plans to introduce some more features such as Business Savings / Current Account in collaboration with an RBI-licensed bank, Fund Transfer, Invoicing, GST and Pay by link and credit services, for the members.
“Transcorp is pleased to partner with Tide to enable digital payments and promote financial expertise among India’s largest business environment: SMEs. This segment is India’s economic backbone but is still financially understaffed. With Tide, we aim to include them in the formal the economy by delivering excellent products and exceptional service. ” so Ayan Agarwal, Vice President, Transcorp. “As India’s leading non – bank card issuer, Transcorp prides itself on enabling financial inclusion for Indian SMEs, and continually strives to deliver success to its partners through optimization of stakeholder alignment.”
Small businesses that have just started will find the business accounts useful for their daily transactions and expenses. Tides Business account is fully digital and not only seamless, but secure and protects users’ privacy.
As the India platform expands during 2022, Tide plans to partner with a number of service providers from payroll providers to credit partners.
