These Fintech Start-ups are Transforming the Retail Sector Some start-ups are allowing customers to pay with just a biometric authentication process

The word fintech always sets off discussions about payments banks and digital wallets. It's even more so if you add retail.

Both for merchants and consumers, the biggest change came in the form of payment wallets that made transactions a much easier process without using cash. But now, the time has come for another change. Wallets are now common and Indian start-ups are already working on the next-level solution that will make not just the merchant but also the consumer's life easier in the retail space.

Entrepreneur India takes a look at the next big financial technology ideas in the retail space

Pay With a Touch of Your Thumb!

With the government pushing for the usage of Aadhaar, it was obvious that start-ups would cash in on the opportunity. Now, with Aadhar being used to link to your bank accounts or to create new accounts, start-ups are looking at ways to incorporate payment systems with Aadhaar. Fingpay, which is a product of Tapits Technologies Pvt. Ltd, will allow customers to pay with just a biometric authentication process. So, there will be no need to look for cards or take out your phones to make a payment. All one has to do is swipe their thumb on a point of sale device and the payment is done.

Track Your Receipts

For a retailer — be it a Kirana store or an e-commerce website — managing financial receipts is a big deal. Sometimes receipts are lost, sometimes you have to retrieve a long-forgotten receipt. Keeping in mind that doing these tasks manually will take a lot of time, start-ups are bringing about a change.

There are many start-ups in the Indian tech space that help you keep a track on your receipts and manage them. And coming to your help is a start-up that's called Don't Scratch Your Head (talk about being literal). They help you manage your inventory, sales channels and also connect multi-channel enterprise companies.

Self-checkout Please!

With Amazon coming up with Amazon Go — a retail store that enables self-checkout — it wasn't long before Indian start-ups facilitate the same for our desi retailers! Say goodbye to those long queues at super- crowded shops by just checking out on your own. Perpule brings about payment solutions while managing self-checkout and queue management. The start-up, which has been founded by ex-Goldman Sach employees, has even received a funding of $650,000.

No Data? Offline, FTW!

With increasing risks in the cyberspace and credit cards or debit cards getting compromised, the next big thing was with offline payments. This would also help people in areas with little or no access to the internet, opt for cashless payments. From money transfer to digital payment, Safe2 Pay, an Indian start-up, lets one pay even with just a text message. They even let you generate a QR code for each transaction, which lets you pay securely for each buy.