Dream Sports, the parent company of fantasy gaming unicorn Dream11, has entered the fintech space with the launch of DreamX, a mobile payments app.
The app is still in beta and is only available to a small number of users as part of the early access programme. The new platform, which is supported by the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and the Bharat Bill Payment System (BBPS), will allow users to send money, pay utility bills, and spend online.
However, the app is still available for download from the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store. While the company already provides payment solutions to online merchants, this move will allow Dream11 to offer payment services to all of its customers.
Dream Sports will look to leverage Dream11’s large user base – nearly 160 million active users as of the end of December 2022 – to drive the fintech vertical. Furthermore, the launch could be an attempt to broaden the options for Dream11 users to spend their winnings.
According to Moneycontrol, Dream Sports has collaborated with payments solution provider Pine Labs, which holds a prepaid payment instrument (PPI) licence, to launch the offering.
The fintech app claims to provide’rewards’ and to highlight offers from Dream11’s other sister companies.
Dream Sports is an umbrella company for several platforms, including Fancode, a sports content and commerce platform, DreamSetGo, a sports experiences platform, and Rario, a cricket-focused digital collectibles startup.
With this, Dream Sports will effectively compete with fintech titans such as PhonePe and Google Pay. Dream Sports may also consider directly catering to Dream11 customers and eliminating the middleman payment platforms in the process.
The move is especially significant given that the National Payments Council of India (NPCI) recently announced that UPI transactions above INR 2,000 made through PPIs to merchants will incur a 1.1% interchange fee.
The announcement comes as Dream Sports looks to strengthen its position in the fantasy gaming space and expand its offerings. While the company intends to increase its investments in sports and gaming startups, increasing competition has reduced its margins to some extent.
