BCCL Hands-Over Majority Stake Of TimesofMoney to Dubai’s Network International

Supporting earlier speculations, Bennett, Coleman and Co. Ltd (BCCL) has sold the majority stake it held in digital payment services provider TimesofMoney, to Dubai based credit-card processing firm Network International LLC (NI). Though the company has not made an exact disclosure about the money changing hands, a TechCircle report suggest that BCCL chose to exit the company at a premium of Rs. 800 – 1000 Crores (US$ 145 – 180 Million).

TimesofMoney is a flagship product that caters to Indians living outside the country. What started with DirecPay, did not make a splash initially, what with Reserve Bank of India (RBI) raising some fundamental queries & all, but later on, the virtual payment management company has not looked back.

India’s transactions on the World Wide Web are increasing significantly. Add to it the proliferation of smartphones & tablets that make surfing the internet & buying stuff online a breeze. When combined with the rapid growth of online web-portals offering just about everything at a click of a button, it makes sense for companies to have an interest in at least some of the segments pertaining to e-commerce.

Network International is already into credit / debit card payments & hence aware of the processes associated with virtual payments. If it can add backend internet banking services to its offering, it can offer a comprehensive package to any company looking for a sturdy payment processing backbone.

Under BCCL’s patronage, TimesofMoney has grown to become a powerful entity in the online payment processing. This backend services company caters to multiple B2C operations with services like money transfers, ePayments and co-branded cards. Initially the company was started merely as a Joint Venture (JV) between Citi Ventures and BCCL. But today that company has grown organically & market experts peg the company at a valuation of Rs. 700 Crores (US$ 126 Million).

Payment Processing Companies are rapidly changing owners. Is it consolidation phase for this sector too?

Image Courtesy |  groophs

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