HiWiPay has received preliminary approval from the IFSCA to establish a payment service provider unit in GIFT City. The firm plans to offer international money transfers, forex management, and merchant services. This move highlights the push for creating regulated, efficient cross-border payment infrastructure for Indian businesses.
What Happened
Cross-border payments firm HiWiPay has received in-principle approval from the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA). This preliminary nod allows the company to establish a payment service provider (PSP) subsidiary within the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT City).
This approval is a first, necessary step for the company to operate within India’s designated international financial services hub. Once the company meets all regulatory conditions and receives final authorization, it plans to launch a suite of financial services. These will include cross-border money transfers, merchant acquisition, foreign exchange treasury management, and escrow services designed to support businesses involved in international trade.
Why This Matters
For many Indian businesses, including exporters, e-commerce firms, and freelance professionals, moving money across borders remains a complex process. Common challenges include long settlement times, difficulties in managing foreign currency, and navigating strict compliance requirements.
HiWiPay’s entry into the GIFT IFSC ecosystem aims to address these friction points. By setting up a regulated entity at GIFT City, the firm intends to build infrastructure that makes these transactions faster and more transparent. This aligns with the broader goal of GIFT City to become a major global financial services hub, offering a specialized regulatory environment that facilitates international business connectivity.
Business And Management Context
The leadership team at HiWiPay brings significant industry experience to this venture. The company was founded by Dewang Neralla and Geeta Chauhan, both of whom are known for their past work in the digital payments sector. Notably, they were part of the founding team behind Atom Technologies, an early player in India’s digital payments space that was later acquired by NTT Data.
This experience is relevant because building and scaling a regulated payment entity requires navigating complex compliance and technology requirements. The company's goal is to leverage its founders' background to create a tech-led platform that simplifies international collections and payouts for Indian companies.
The Fintech And Regulatory Environment
GIFT City is increasingly attracting financial services firms looking to operate under a specific regulatory framework that is distinct from the domestic market. HiWiPay will join an existing group of payment service providers already registered with the IFSCA, such as Betafront Financial Services and INDmoney Payments.
For the fintech sector, the primary challenge remains execution. While receiving an in-principle approval is a positive step, the success of such an entity depends on its ability to build a secure, compliant, and cost-effective platform. The market for cross-border payments is highly competitive, with established banks, traditional remittance players, and newer fintech firms all vying for market share. Investors and industry observers will monitor how quickly HiWiPay can obtain final clearance and scale its operations to compete effectively in this space.
What To Monitor Next
The key focus for HiWiPay will be securing the final authorization from the IFSCA. Following this, the monitorable will be the company’s ability to attract clients, manage currency volatility, and maintain compliance standards in a regulated environment. As the ecosystem at GIFT City continues to expand, the ability of new entrants to differentiate their services through technology and efficiency will determine their long-term growth.