PayNearby sees rural India powering the next consumption and financial-inclusion wave

Founder Anand Kumar Bajaj says assisted digital services, local trust and women’s participation will deepen commerce, credit and insurance adoption across rural and small-town India.

— Source publishedFri, 24 Jul, 2026, 07:05 IST·First seen Fri, 24 Jul, 2026, 07:14 IST·Source YourStory · Capital

What happened

PayNearby founder Anand Kumar Bajaj argues that India’s next consumption and financial-inclusion wave will come from rural and small-town markets, supported by

Key facts

  • Digital economy projected to reach nearly 20% of India’s GVA by 2029-30
  • UPI processed 22.72 billion transactions worth Rs 28.92 lakh crore in June 2026

Why this matters

Prioritize partnerships or acquisitions involving assisted-service networks, rural agent platforms and women-focused financial-distribution capabilities to extend reach beyond metros.

What to watch

  • Growth in rural AePS, UPI, micro-ATM and assisted bill-payment transaction volumes.
  • RBI or government policy changes affecting business correspondents, digital lending, KYC or cash-out economics.
  • Insurance, pension and credit conversion rates from assisted-digital customer bases.
  • Female account activity, repeat usage and formal-credit penetration in tier-3, tier-4 and rural districts.
  • Agent churn, transaction productivity, commission trends and fraud-loss rates.
  • Bank, NBFC, insurer and e-commerce partnerships with agent-network operators.
  • Mobile connectivity reliability and smartphone adoption in underserved districts.
  • Expand agent-led onboarding for women customers, self-help groups and first-time formal-finance users.
  • Bundle payments with insurance renewal, pension enrollment, cash-flow tools and small-ticket credit referrals.
  • Use assisted-service transaction histories to build alternative-risk signals for banks and NBFC partners.
  • Add rural commerce services including order placement, returns, local pickup, merchant catalogues and agricultural-input payments.
  • Invest in agent training, fraud controls, vernacular interfaces and customer grievance resolution to protect local trust.
  • Pursue bank, insurer, government and FMCG partnerships that increase agent footfall and improve network economics.

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