FreeCharge collaborates with ICICI Merchant Services for business in 700 cities

FreeCharge, India’s fastest growing digital payments platform partnered with ICICI Merchant Services. With this partnership, the online payment app will now be accepted at over 1 Lakh ICICI Merchant Services’ merchants across 700 cities and towns in India.

FreeCharge’s partnership powered by First Data will ease the payment process for merchants and consumers by introducing a swifter and secure way to make cashless payments. Customers can use their mobile phones to make payments and complete the transaction with a secure On-The-Go-Pin in less than 10 seconds. With this arrangement going live, more than one lakh merchants using ICICI Merchant Services Posterminals can now accept the FreeCharge wallet at their establishments.

These one lakh merchants will expand the huge base of merchants already accepting FreeCharge, including leading retail and food brands like Shoppers Stop, Hypercity, Pantaloons, Vishal Mega Mart, Café Coffee Day, Barista, McDonald’s, Haldiram and more than 53,000 fuel pumps across the country. In addition lakhs of smaller merchants including grocery stores, chemists and food delivery outlets use FreeCharge to offer their customers the fastest digital payment experience.

Commenting on the partnership, Govind Rajan, Chief Executive Officer, FreeCharge said, “We are pleased to partner with ICICI Merchant Services for enabling the app to go live on additional 1 lakh merchants as a payment option. The partnership will help us expand our footprint and enable merchants and consumers from Tier I & II cities to be part of the digital payments ecosystems.”

Commenting on the partnership, Swarup Choudhury, MD of ICICI Merchant Services & First Data India said “ICICI Merchant Services enables businesses across India to securely and conveniently accept electronic payments through its secure and advanced POS terminals and its state-of-the-art payment gateway. Accepting FreeCharge wallets on our terminals will enable merchants to increase their revenues, reduce cash handling costs and offer a better shopping experience to their customers. With our strong presence across the country, we look forward to offering app wallet consumers the benefit of cashless payment as per their convenience.”