Cashfree Payments Introduces Zero-Fee Payment Gateway to Boost Merchant Onboarding

For new merchants joining up on its platform, fintech company Cashfree Payments has announced that it will waive payment gateway fees. This comes at a time when competition in India's digital payments market is at an all-time high. By the end of 2026–27 (FY27), the firm aims to have doubled the number of small and medium companies (SMBs) to two million.

Before the festival season begins, small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) can take advantage of a fee waiver program that will cover up to INR 20 lakh in gross merchandise value (GMV) before the end of FY27. The fintech company, which is headquartered in Bengaluru, presently provides services to one million merchants who are in the early stages of development and are expanding.

Cashfree Aims to Expand its Network With This Move: Datta

In an interview with a media outlet, Cashfree Payments cofounder Reeju Datta said that out of the 25,000 new businesses that launch each month, about 20% use Cashfree to explore new payment options. They, along with anyone else who is unhappy with or seeking an excuse to leave their current payment gateway, are the intended recipients of this project. Datta would not reveal the programme's budget, but he did characterise it as a marketing expenditure to expand its merchant base. He made the point that merchants who generate more than INR 20 lakh in GMV are a major source of revenue.

Following the achievement of the INR 20 lakh GMV target, the present scheme imposes regular gateway fees on the organisation. Datta elaborated by saying that compared to merchants in the 1–20 lakh range, the small number of merchants whose GMV exceeds INR 20 lakh will generate more income. Gross merchandise value (GMV) is the sum of all platform sales for a specific time period, before any deductions for fees, discounts, refunds, or other expenses.

While the Indian digital payments industry is known to have thin margins, the emphasis on merchant acquisition continues. More than fifty companies participate in Cashfree Payments' payment processing, including industry heavyweights like PayU, Razorpay, AvenuesAI, BillDesk, and PhonePe.

Datta Explained Why it is Right Time to Switch

Existing merchants can migrate, according to Datta, because it's easy to switch right now. The initial transaction processing time has decreased from months to minutes due to the significant reduction in integration times with payments processing partners. The number of users who made their first purchase is one metric that Cashfree tracks in minutes. He mentioned that the platform may accommodate long-tail merchants' needs for different ways to pay.

The methods include enabling credit card on Unified Payments Interface (UPI), netbanking, American Express (Amex), and Diner, among others. The holiday season accounts for 40% of the annual revenues for the typical small or direct-to-customer business, he said in a statement. In addition, Datta pointed out that 90% of new sellers who sign up before the peak sales period achieve a GMV of INR 20 lakh at that time. Merchants' payment costs for this season are covered by the fee waiver, he added.