Split & pay taking off: Combine payment methods for seamless high-value bills

Payment gateway providers like Phi Commerce have launched this product to their enterprise clients, while similar providers like Cashfree Payments provide split payments in collections. Three more payment providers are toying with their plan to launch split & pay concept, industry sources said. Using this concept, a customer can pay a single bill of Rs 6 lakh or Rs 10 lakh using different debit or credit cards in one swipe instead of using several cards one after another.

“Although for the front end, which is the customer interface it might be a single transaction, several reconciliations occur at the back-end real time with multiple payment gateway providers and respective banks. Enterprise clients using these methods have already started seeing the benefits of this innovation with higher uptick on high-value transactions… and more merchants are getting onboard,” said an official of a fintech firm.

Split & pay comes handy on several occasions, especially during a medical emergency or the kid’s college fees or any other unexpected high value payment. Since most individuals do not keep a large amount in their bank account, they will have to take out all their credit and debit cards and do some mental accounting before proceeding to the payment counter, fintechs say. Payment providers see good scope in these areas as, according to RBI data, credit transfer-retail transactions were Rs 674 lakh crore and payment through cards (including credit and debit) was Rs 24.23 lakh crore in FY24.

And it is not a futuristic solution any more as scores of HDFC Life customers are already using the split & pay option to pay their large premium payouts.

“Also, there are quite a few smart-shoppers who use this facility to maximise their rewards points using loyalty programmes attached to plastic money,” fintech circles said.

“Split & pay is a robust payment solution designed to facilitate high-value transactions and group transactions by enabling customers to use multiple payment instruments for a single purchase. This system goes beyond traditional collection methods, offering a seamless experience for both customers and businesses,” said Rajesh Londhe, Co-founder, and Head of Payments at Phi Commerce, an omnichannel payment platforms provider for large enterprises. The company has just launched this product as the first omni channel payment platform provider in the countr

Further, a group of people can make a payment using their cards or net banking or UPI in one swipe with this concept. “With group booking and split payment options, everyone can use their own payment method, eliminating the need for one person to cover the entire cost upfront. All split transactions are reconciled in a single process, simplifying the accounting and financial management for businesses,” the fintech official said.

According to tech analysts, as fintechs are exploring newer methods of payment, this innovation would soon start to find more traction to such a point that every large payment checkout page would start finding this option.