Paytm Acquired Consumer Prediction Platform Shifu

An online payments and commerce firm, Paytm, has acquired Shifu, a consumer prediction platform based out of Delhi, for $8 Million.

Shifu predicts consumer preferences and behavior which would be very useful for Paytm to enhance its customer experience.

Shifu was founded, 2 years ago, by 3 young technology professionals who will join Paytm including other 20 members of the company. Shifu had raised a funding from a group of investors including Delhi’s top technology entrepreneurs.

For Paytm, the acquisition was a part of plan to invest $150 Million in the emerging companies to build a complete digital ecosystem. Paytm has further to plans to acquire almost 10 more companies with this fund. Few previous acquisitions which were the part of this plan were Near.in, Jugnoo, LogiNext, etc.

According to TechSci Research, to provide consumer with customized service, Shifu’s technology of mining a person’s phone data using the location, time and other preferences to come up with a personalized predictions and relevant suggestions would help Paytm to prepare a better strategy for their business.

With increasing e-commerce market, this move would help Paytm to further refine the customer experience. According to a report published by TechSci Research “India E-commerce Market Forecast & Opportunities, 2020” the country’s e-commerce market is projected to grow at a CAGR of more than 36% during 2015-2020 and E-services segment which includes online payments, is expected to continue its domination through 2020.