In November 2020, WhatsApp obtained approval from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to use the country's Unified Payments Platform (UPI) payments system for only 20 million users.
Manesh Mahatme, a former Amazon executive, has been hired as the head of WhatsApp's payments division in India by Facebook. Mahatme has over 17 years of experience in digital financial services and payments across Citibank, Airtel Money, and Amazon Pay, according to a statement released by WhatsApp on Monday.
Abhijit Bose, Head of WhatsApp India, said Manesh has been one of the key innovators driving the growth of digital payments in India over the last decade, and his experience will help us maximise the impact and scale of payments on WhatsApp.
His most recent position was as director and board member of Amazon Pay India, where he headed product, engineering, and growth teams, according to the company.
"By making digital payments accessible to users across the length and breadth of India, WhatsApp Payments is ideally positioned to be a vital partner in the country's growth goal," Mahatme said.
Manesh has been one of the key pioneers driving the expansion of digital payments in India over the last decade, according to Abhijit Bose, Head of WhatsApp India, and his experience will help us maximise the impact and scalability of payments on WhatsApp.
