India to mandate ‘whitelist’ of loan apps; Bessemer raises $4.6 bln; ToneTag expands VoiceSe payments service

India’s finance ministry has decided that loan apps need to get government approval to be listed on online app stores, predominantly those operated by Google and Apple. The ministry’s officials and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met last week to discuss rising concerns over loan apps running rampant and the illegal practices adopted by some of the outfits providing loans. Central banker Reserve Bank of India will now make a list of legal apps that are permitted on the stores. Notes: India’s finance ministry has decided that loan apps need to get government approval to be listed on online stores, predominantly those operated by Google and Apple. The ministry’s officials and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met last week to discuss rising concerns over loan apps running rampant and the illegal practices adopted by some of the outfits providing loans. Harassment by such outfits is said to have led to several suicides already, according to multiple media reports. The finance minister expressed concern on increasing instances of illegal loan apps offering loans/micro credits, especially to vulnerable and low-income group people at exorbitantly high-interest rates and processing/hidden charges, and predatory recovery practices involving blackmailing, criminal intimidation etc, the ministry said in a statement on Sep. 9. Minister Sitharaman also noted the possibility of money laundering, tax evasion, breach/privacy of data, and misuse of unregulated payment aggregators, shell companies, defunct NBFCs and so on for perpetrating such actions, according to the statement. The ministry has decided that a ‘whitelist’ of legal apps will be created by the country’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of India, and will collaborate with the ministry of electronics and information technology to ensure that only such apps are allowed on the app stores. Bessemer Venture Partners has raised $4.6 billion across two funds — $3.85 billion for its twelfth flagship fund, BVP XII, and $780 million for its inaugural BVP Forge fund, the VC firm said in a press release on Sep. 9. These two new funds allow the firm to back entrepreneurs and management teams across all stages of growth, regardless of maturity or structure, according to the release. Naffa Innovations, a Bengaluru startup better known for its sound technology and products under the brand name ToneTag, is expanding its VoiceSe solution to help even basic feature phone users make digital payments. ToneTag is partnering with NSDL Payments Bank and NPCI to offer this service to some 400 million feature phone users in India. Users can simply call the IVR number 6366 200 200 and select their transaction in their preferred language. People can make fund transfers, and get voice assistance for paying utility bills, balance enquiries, and FASTag activation or recharge using only their voice. “We are looking at voice technology that goes beyond Siri and Alexa to enable digital payment solutions that aren't necessarily dependent on 100 percent digital literacy or smartphone penetration,” Vivek Singh, who co-founded Naffa Innovations with Kumar Abhishek, in 2013, said in a press release. ToneTag has been pilot testing this service in Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand, and VoiceSe has seen traction, adding 100,000 users and twice as many transactions in the first two months of the launch, according to the release. Theme music courtesy Free Music & Sounds: https://soundcloud.com/freemusicandsounds