Truecaller announces partnership with Google, Airtel and ICICI bank to take on WhatsApp

Truecaller has announced a slew of partnerships in a bid to compete with WhatsApp in India.

Truecaller has partnered with Google Duo, to integrate its's video calling feature on its platform. The feature will be available in the coming months for Android and iOS as a permission-based service, where users will be able to opt-in and out at any time.

"With valuable partners like Google, we are bringing all your mobile communications and transactions under one roof with the safest and most efficient experience possible," said Nami Zarringhalam, co-founder and CSO of Truecaller.

Truecaller is also redesigning its Android app that will include a broader array of features. The redesigned platform will include SMS filter that allows users to instantly see who has sent an SMS and filter out all spam messages. Flash Messaging lets users send quick pre-defined messages to any Truecaller user.

The company is also launching Truecaller Pay to help Android users to send or receive money securely over their mobile phone. For this, the company has partnered with ICICI Bank to provide the technology behind the service. Beyond holding the necessary licenses for the service, the bank is using India’s UPI payment system to enable it. Truecaller Pay will open to users of any bank in India.

Truecaller is also planning to expand to other countries. “If we are able to find success with these kinds of services , then we could replicate a similar model in other markets,” Kim Fai Kok, director of communications at Truecaller, told TechCrunch. “There are big opportunities in markets like Kenya and Nigeria, we need to focus and make sure we get the first rollout right.”

It has also partnered with Airtel, to launch "Airtel Truecaller ID" to extend the caller ID feature for Airtel users who use feature phones.

It looks like Truecaller is ready to become a platform with video calls, text messages and payments. But it still has a long way to go to compete with WhatsApp, which boasts India as its largest single market worldwide with 200 million active users.