Route Mobile targets twin acquisitions by end-FY23

Route Mobile, a leading cloud communications platform service provider, is set to conclude two acquisitions by end-FY23 as it looks to grow its business of offering security solutions to thwart digital fraud, a top company executive said.

Route is in talks to buy two companies, one European and an Indian entity. The Europe-based acquisition target will help Route launch mobile identity services while the Indian acquisition target will allow it to offer voice solutions, using artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) technologies.

“As digital adoption, especially for banking and payments increases, so does the risk of digital fraud….we as communication platform service providers want to solve the security issue when it comes to digital transactions,” Route Mobile’s group chief executive Rajdip Gupta said.

Mobile identity technology would allow Route to analyse the life cycle of a SIM card (read: a mobile connection), and based on patterns shown, the company could use data analytics to flag potential digital fraud.

According to Gupta, a lot of digital fraud happens when unassuming consumers click on an innocuous-looking link, only to have their SIMs duplicated remotely. As a result, the person(s) with access to the duplicate SIM is able to read all content on it, including banking OTPs (one-time passwords).

He said mobile identity technology would allow Route to check when a SIM card has been activated, and if the transaction pattern differs from the usual one. Route’s role, though, would be limited to flagging off potential fraud, and intervention steps would have to be taken by the banking or financial institution concerned.

“We are working on the proof-of-concept with a telco and will soon launch trials with a couple of banks,” he said. He added that besides banks, digital wallet companies could also be potential clients for this service in the future.

Gupta said due diligence is on for Route’s second targeted acquisition of an Indian entity operating in the voice solutions space. The deal, he said, is likely to close by the year-end.

He added that the upcoming voice solutions would provide real-time data to call centres enabling the latter to be more agile when it comes to daily targets and strategy. “Most call centres look at data weekly or even monthly. By this time, the opportunity for a major lead conversion may have passed,” Gupta said.

He added that the AI/ML layer of the voice solution would enable call centres to track customer sentiment by analysing voice patterns, pitch and tenor. “So, if the software detects that things are getting heated and the customer is getting irritated, it would flag off a senior employee (at the call centre) to intervene before things get out of hand,” Gupta added.

Route Mobile, which caters to over-the-top (OTT) players and mobile carriers, has also launched an R&D centre in Bengaluru to develop use cases and solutions around CPaaS. For instance, it has developed the Coca-Cola WhatsApp bot for Coca-Cola UAE which allows consumers to search for products, place orders and pay via the WhatsApp interface.

Another use case that Route has identified will enable customers to auto-fill forms on various websites using KYC data they have shared with a telco. Inside Headline