PhonePe
India's UPI giant — 600M+ registered; wallets, deposits marketplace, insurance.
- Who holds it
- An e-money institution holds your balance in a safeguarding account — RBI PPI wallet (e-money issuer) + payment aggregator license (2025); IRDAI insurance broking.
- The ledger
- The e-money institution’s own ledger.
- If it fails
- Safeguarded funds are returned in administration — ring-fenced, but access can be frozen and slow.
Derived from PhonePe’s regulation type and custody — a class of protection, not a guarantee. Limits and eligibility vary by scheme, balance and jurisdiction; confirm before you rely on it. What happens if a neobank shuts down →
The facts
| Category | traditional |
| HQ | Bengaluru, IN |
| Founded | 2015 |
| Custody | Custodial |
| Regulation type | E-money institution |
| License detail | RBI PPI wallet (e-money issuer) + payment aggregator license (2025); IRDAI insurance broking |
| Card | RuPay/UPI · UPI + cards |
| Cashback | Rewards |
| Stablecoins | No |
| KYC | Yes |
| Active regions | Asia |
| Reported users | 200M MAU (2025) |
Verified links: official site ↗
Common questions about PhonePe
What is PhonePe?
PhonePe is a fiat neobank, headquartered in Bengaluru, IN and founded in 2015. Your money is held custodially, so PhonePe or its partner bank holds the balance and you hold a claim on it. It is regulated as an e-money institution (RBI PPI wallet (e-money issuer) + payment aggregator license (2025); IRDAI insurance broking).
Does PhonePe have a card, and where can you use it?
It issues a RuPay and UPI upi and cards. It is available in Asia.
Does PhonePe require KYC?
Yes. PhonePe requires identity verification (KYC) to open an account, as a e-money institution.
What does PhonePe cost?
From the verified fields: cashback Rewards. Cashback and yield are "up to" figures that change constantly and often depend on a paid plan — confirm current terms with PhonePe before relying on them.
Early investors
Head-to-head
Peers
Wise · KakaoBank · WeBank · bKash · Maya · GCash
PhonePe appears in
Neobanks authorised as e-money institutions (48) · Neobanks available in Asia (132) · Neobanks on domestic card networks (16) · Neobanks in India (12)
Figures compiled from public sources, for comparison only — not financial advice. "Up to" rates change constantly; always confirm with the issuer. Spotted an error? Suggest a fix.