MAM
Truecaller collaborates with The Womb for communication duties
Mumbai: Truecaller has roped in The Womb to chart out an impactful communication drive in India. The agency will be responsible for the brand’s communication strategy, thereby propelling long-term brand building through the power of robust strategic thinking and powerful storytelling.
Speaking on the partnership, Truecaller chief commercial officer Kari Krishnamurty said, “We are delighted to welcome The Womb as our creative partner in India. The Womb has proven expertise that helps reach the consumer with meaningful storytelling. Together, we are looking forward to creating more impact and elevating our brand proposition, making Truecaller an obvious choice for every consumer to experience safety in communication.”
The Womb co-founder Kawal Shoor said, “The team at Truecaller is young and restless. They are ready to take on challenges head-on and are not scared to take risks or to do things that have never been done before. This makes a great culture fit with what we believe and the work we create. We are up for the challenge and are excited. Shouldering the responsibility of a young tech brand, we are geared up to face the challenges and grab the opportunities with both hands to create work that is simple yet unignorable.”
Kawal further added, “Over the years, Truecaller has been working towards empowering consumers to make the right choices. We feel it’s a great time to take this opportunity to the next level and engage with the consumers at a deeper level, which is beyond just being a caller ID. We feel that in the last seven years, we have just touched the tip of the iceberg and there is so much more that Truecaller has to offer to ‘Bharat’.”
Brands
Reserve Bank of India cancels Paytm Payments Bank licence
Central bank cites compliance failures; curbs tighten as wind-up looms
MUMBAI: India’s banking watchdog delivered its sharpest blow yet to Paytm Payments Bank, cancelling its licence and effectively ending its ability to operate as a bank under the law.
The Reserve Bank of India said the entity can no longer conduct banking business under the Banking Regulation Act, citing concerns that its affairs were not being run in the interest of depositors or the public and that it had failed to meet licence conditions.
The move escalates a crackdown that has been building for months. The bank had already been barred from onboarding new customers since March 11, 2022, and later faced restrictions on deposits, credit and wallet top-ups. In January 2024, the central bank ordered it to stop accepting fresh deposits, pointing to persistent non-compliance, including lapses in customer due diligence, use of funds and technology systems.
Operationally, the bank is now on a tight leash. It may process withdrawals of existing deposits and facilitate loan referrals through banking correspondents, but it cannot take fresh deposits.
The central bank said it would apply to the high court to wind up the bank.
Paytm sought to ringfence the fallout. In a regulatory filing, it said the licence cancellation applies to Paytm Payments Bank Limited, a separate entity, and should not be attributed to One 97 Communications. It added that there is no exposure or material business arrangement with the bank and that it operates independently, without Paytm’s board or management involvement.
“As informed earlier, Paytm (One 97 Communications Limited) and its services, which have been operating without interruption, will continue to operate uninterrupted. These include the Paytm app, Paytm UPI, Paytm Gold and all other services offered by its subsidiaries and associated companies,” the company said.
The distinction may reassure users of the app ecosystem, but the regulator’s verdict is unequivocal. After years of warnings, caps and curbs, the payments bank experiment at Paytm is being shut down—decisively, and with little room left to manoeuvre.
