PayNearby, a branchless banking and digital network has unveiled the Digital Naari platform to generate long-term self-employment for women across Bharat. This program is designed to provide additional income generation opportunities for women in rural and semi-urban areas, recognising their pivotal role as equal contributors to the nation's growth.
Aligned with the Government's ‘Lakhpati Didi’ initiative, the platform seeks to onboard and uplift 1 lakh women by the end of 2025, facilitating their economic empowerment. The goal is to help women business owners, single women, and women with literacy challenges to have sustainable livelihood opportunities while enhancing their financial well-being and fostering self-reliance.
Through the Digital Naari platform, the uplifted lady banker, called didi, can provide a diverse range of financial and digital services to the masses. She will have the flexibility to offer services at her convenience in terms of time, location (from home/store), and product preferences.
Catering to the needs of rural women, the services include cash withdrawal, bank account opening, money transfer, recharge, assurance (insurance + assets), credit, and e-commerce, facilitating their path to financial literacy and financial independence.
PayNearby claimed that it currently has a network of over 10,000 women collectively steering more than Rs 1000 crores of transactions annually. The Digital Naari platform aims to broaden this network by partnering with organizations, self-help groups, and individuals dedicated to promoting sustainable livelihood among rural women.
Anand Kumar Bajaj, founder, MD and CEO, of PayNearby, said, “In the journey of a nation's progress, true advancement is achieved when women stand as equal contributors. Our collaborations with various livelihood missions, including Uttar Pradesh State Rural Livelihood Mission (UPSRLM), Rajasthan Grameen Aajeevika Vikas Parishad (Rajeevika), Grameen Foundation India, are propelling countless women towards economic independence and societal recognition through our Digital Naari app. We extend an open invitation to like-minded institutions and self-help groups to join us in maximizing the reach of this initiative and empowering women.”
Jayatri Dasgupta, CMO of PayNearby, added, "With the ‘Digital Naari’ program we are sowing the seeds of strength, resilience, and self-reliance across the nation by giving every woman in the country a sustainable livelihood and an opportunity to lead life at her own terms. Sashakt Naari, Sashakt Desh.”
Incepted in April 2016, PayNearby operates on a B2B2C model, where it partners with neighbourhood retail stores and enables them with the tools to provide digital and financial services to local communities. It aims to simplify high-end technology so that it can be easily assimilated at the last mile while transforming the lives of its retail partners and customers.
Through its tech-led DaaS (Distribution as a Service) network, the company serves 75% of India by enabling services like cash withdrawal, remittance, Aadhaar banking, bill payment and recharges, savings, travel, digital payments, insurance and more. Currently, its 50 lakh plus microentrepreneurs across 20,000 PIN codes assist its 30+ crore customers across the country to the tune of more than Rs 8000 crores GTV per month.