Snapdeal is set to become the first e-commerce marketplace to debut on the government-led Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC). The Delhi NCR-based Snapdeal, which signed the onboarding agreement to plug into ONDC earlier this month, will launch on the network with three key categories — fashion, home and beauty & personal care.

“Snapdeal’s on-boarding on ONDC will accelerate efforts to reach a wider audience of buyers and sellers and also cover larger parts of the country,” said T Koshy, CEO, ONDC.

After running pilots in several cities across India, the UPI-type platform, being created to take on the might of ecommerce giants such as Flipkart and Amazon, is accelerating its efforts to expand its footprint.

Snapdeal, which pivoted its business model to cater to the value segment, said the move matches its existing focus on connecting small & medium sellers with a large and growing online market, especially amongst buyers living outside India’s metro cities.

The former Flipkart and Amazon rival currently draws more than 86% of its orders from outside the metro cities.