Fintech

PhonePe goes to market: The UPI champion’s toughest pitch yet

Nikhil Patwardhan

January 21, 2026 | 15 Min Read

UPI made PhonePe a household habit and India’s biggest payments platform. But public markets won’t reward dominance alone. As it eyes a $12–15 billion IPO, PhonePe must prove its diversification bet—lending, insurance, broking—can become a second engine.

The tension in the room was palpable.

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