Synopsis Fintech platform PayU’s buy-now-pay-later service LazyPay’s website was taken down following a notice from MeitY. Kissht, another lending platform, was also unavailable for users in India. ETtech This was also the first time the government moved to ban quick-loan apps which have Chinese origins (Illustration: Rahul Awasthi) Days after banning 94 digital-lending platforms and 138 betting and gambling apps, the IT ministry on Friday revoked the order for some affected companies such as PayU-owned LazyPay and Kissht after the aggrieved fintech startups submitted documents detailing their shareholding structure to the government. ETtech looks at the timeline to understand how it unfolded February 5: The government issued orders to block 138 betting and gambling apps and 94 quick loan-providing apps on an “urgent” and “emergency” basis for “improper data storage and transfer” to other countries as well as money laundering, sources said. In total, 232 apps were banned by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology ( MeitY ) in its orders. Some of these apps have Chinese origin and the blocking orders were issued by the IT ministry based on information and inputs from the Union Home Ministry, a source told ET. “These apps contained material which is prejudicial to sovereignty and integrity of India,” one of the officials said. This was also the first time the government moved to ban quick-loan apps which have Chinese origins. Most of these apps, sources said, had Indian people working and directors. Discover the stories of your interest Blockchain 5 Stories Cyber-safety 7 Stories Fintech 9 Stories E-comm 9 Stories ML 8 Stories Edtech 6 Stories February 6: ET reportedthat the government order to ban 94 lending apps also included apps of Indian firms , according to an official. Fintech platform PayU’s buy-now-pay-later service LazyPay’s website was taken down following a notice from MeitY. PayU is owned by South African and Dutch group Naspers. “The website has been blocked as per the order of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology under the IT Act, 2000,” LazyPay said on its website late on Monday. Kissht, another lending platform, was also unavailable for users in India. Kissht cofounder Ranvir Singh had told ET: "We are reaching out to MeitY to resolve this as soon as possible as lakhs of our customers who avail our services are impacted. This will impact their ability to use credit for productive purposes". February 9: The lending platforms that fell under a list of apps blocked by the Centre submitted documents detailing their shareholding structure to the government , sources privy to the development had told ET. They were also expected to submit certificates showing they are regulated by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the sources said. This came after a meeting between government officials and fintech founders on Tuesday during which the latter had sought clarity on why regulated online lending apps were being banned. During the discussion, some of these fintech firms were questioned about their investors and capital structure, and were also asked to submit supplementary documents. “It seems that through discussions and various questions, MeitY is trying to find out whether any of the apps have Chinese partners or investors. The ministry is basically trying to cull out the good ones from the bad actors,” said another person who was aware of the discussions that took place. February 10: MeitY started issuing orders to internet service providers (ISPs) and Play Store operator Google to unblock some of the digital lending apps and websites it had banned in its February 5 order. This came after the platforms submitted documents to the government proving they were regulated entities. One of the people privy to the matter said MeitY was sending individual orders and that revocation orders have been sent out for a few platforms including PayU-owned LazyPay and Kissht. Others that were a part of MeitY’s list to be unblocked on Friday include Indiabulls Housing Finance’s indiabullshomeloans. com, buddyloan. com, faircent. com and Aptoide versions of some digital lending platforms such as KreditBee and mPokket. “MeitY has received documents from several platforms over the last few days and has been scrutinising the submissions to ascertain whether the ban was necessary or not. We have concluded that some of these platforms need not be blocked and, therefore, some ban orders are being revoked,” a government official said. Also read | ETtech Explainer: why are quick-loan apps under the government scanner? Don’t miss out on ET Prime stories! Get your daily dose of business updates on WhatsApp. click here! Saturday, 11 Feb, 2023 Experience Your Economic Times Newspaper, The Digital Way! Read Complete Print Edition » Front Page Pure Politics Companies Markets More Industrial Output Grows, but at Slower Pace in Dec Industrial production expanded for the second consecutive month in December, but growth eased to 4. 3% from 7. 3% in the preceding month, as tepid manufacturing took the sheen off the sharp rebound in mining and electricity. Adani Stocks Crack Again, ₹31,000 crore in Group mcap Wiped Out Adani Group stocks fell for a second day Friday after MSCI said it will reduce the weights of four of the conglomerate’s companies in its standard index. Adani Enterprises, Adani Transmission, Adani Total Gas and ACC could see outflows of $425 million, or about ₹3,450 crore, by the end of this month when the adjustments come into effect. SC Seeks Govt View on Ways to Shield Investors The Supreme Court sought the government’s views on whether the regulatory regime needs strengthening in order to ensure that investors are protected while hearing public interest litigation (PIL) related to the Hindenburg Research report on the Adani Group. Read More News on quick loan apps banned lending apps gaming platforms meity it ministry ban lending apps lazypay kissht internet service providers play store indiabulls Stay on top of technology and startup news that matters. Subscribe to our daily newsletter for the latest and must-read tech news, delivered straight to your inbox. . . . more less ETPrime stories of the day Real Estate Interest rates are rising, so are rental yields. Is it the right time to invest in property? 8 mins read 3 insights to kick-start your day, featuring Swiggy’s “poor judgement” 3 mins read Strategy Stock Radar: Technical charts suggest HDFC Bank is likely to hit fresh record highs in next 3-6 months; time to buy? 3 mins read Subscribe to ETPrime.