Bengaluru, June 22 -- Cashback is no longer just a tool to drive payments on UPI, the unified payments interface. In a push for growth, newer fintech apps are increasingly using rewards to turn frequent payment users into customers for stickier businesses such as credit, commerce and other financial products, a strategy that is prompting even established players such as Paytm to raise cashback spending.

Beyond payments, the newer crop of UPI players, such as POP, super.money, Navi, KreditPe and Kiwi, are taking to different business models.

Razorpay-backed POP is building a rewards-and-commerce layer around POPcoins. Flipkart-backed super.money is leaning on cashback, RuPay credit cards and secured credit products. Navi, Kiwi and Kredit...