Meesho and Cashfree Payments Partner to Provide Instant Refunds

As India’s internet commerce company Meesho prepares to go public, the Bengaluru-based social platform has partnered with Cashfree Payments to enable instant refunds for cash on delivery (COD) orders placed through its platform, the companies announced last week.

This integration of Cashfree Payments, the India-based payment and API banking solutions company, promises to enhance the shopping experience for Meesho users while minimizing the need for manual intervention on certain orders.

COD has been India’s preferred payment method. Reducing the time it takes to process refunds will enhance customer experience and increase their trust when making online purchases, Meesho said.

The partnership is expected to provide refunds in less than two hours and eliminate glitches caused by tech failures or bank downtime thanks to Cashfree Payments’ bulk disbursal offering “Payouts,” the company said.

In addition, the collaboration with Cashfree Payments is expected to automate supplier payouts and enable payout via UPI, the firm said.

“Meesho aims to become the preferred shopping destination for the next billion Indian consumers, and our partnership with Cashfree Payments will address a very important aspect in the users’ journey and help us move closer to this goal,”said Kirti Varun Avasarala, Meesho’s chief product officer, in a statement.

Reeju Datta, co-founder of Cashfree Payments, said Payouts will help Meesho’s customers with speedy refunds into their bank account. Queries around delayed refunds are a major source of customer complaints among eCommerce businesses, and the alliance will reduce such queries, he added.

Last month, Reuters quoted an anonymous source who revealed Meesho, with investors including Meta Platforms and SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2, plans to go public in 2023.

Related: Indian Social Commerce Platform Meesho Going Public Early Next Year

“Meesho is filing documents by January next year and wants to essentially be done with the IPO by the first half of 2023,” the source told the news outlet.