In September 2025 Blinkit went inventory-led. It stopped being a shelf you list on and became a buyer that issues purchase orders, takes your stock, and pays you afterwards.
That single change turned a lot of D2C brands into suppliers. And suppliers wait.
If you sold into quick commerce, modern trade, or any large buyer this year, you know the shape of it. Goods delivered, invoice raised, then a silence you cannot do much about. We wrote about the onboarding side of this in our guide to selling on Blinkit; this post is about the part that comes after the invoice.
The remedy that nobody used
The MSMED Act, 2006 always had a delayed-payment remedy. Section 15 says a buyer must pay within the agreed period and in any event within 45 days of accepting the goods, and within 15 days where there is no written agreement. Section 16 attaches compound interest at three times the RBI bank rate, with monthly rests. Sections 15 to 23 override any contract term to the contrary, so a clause saying “no interest on delays” does not survive contact with the Act.
On paper that is a strong regime. In practice most founders gave up on it, because the process had no clock.
A buyer could contest the award, apply to have it set aside, and let the application sit. Nothing in the Act capped how long any stage could take. The cost of stalling was close to zero and the cost of pursuing was a year of your attention.
What changed on 7 August 2026
Parliament passed the MSMED (Amendment) Bill, 2026. The Rajya Sabha cleared it on 3 August and the Lok Sabha on 7 August. Three changes matter if somebody is holding your money.
1. A clock on every stage
Mediation has to finish within 90 days of the first appearance. The Facilitation Council then has 30 days to refer the matter to arbitration. The award has to be made within 90 days of pleadings closing.
Roughly seven months end to end, where before there was no outer limit at all.
2. Fifty per cent while they appeal
This is the one that changes behaviour.
If the buyer applies to set the award aside and that application is still pending after six months, the court is required to order payment of at least 50% of the awarded amount to you.
Appealing used to be free. It now costs half the money up front.
3. Recovery as an arrear of land revenue
A mediated settlement or an arbitral award under Section 18 can now be recovered as an arrear of land revenue, through the District Collector or Deputy Commissioner in the jurisdiction where the buyer holds assets.
That is a different instrument from a civil decree. It moves collection out of a court queue and into a revenue authority.
What the amendment does not do
Two limits, because the coverage has been loose on both.
- TReDS is public sector only. Central Public Sector Enterprises must now settle MSME invoices through the Trade Receivables Discounting System, and states have an enabling mechanism to nudge their own PSEs. That is the whole scope. You cannot use this clause to push a private marketplace or a quick-commerce platform onto TReDS.
- None of it is automatic. The delayed-payment machinery applies where the supplier is a registered micro or small enterprise. Udyam registration is voluntary and free, and the amendment makes the portal permanent in the Act. If you are not registered, none of the above is available to you.
What to do this month
- Check your Udyam status. It is free, and the portal is now statutory. Without registration you have no standing under Sections 15 to 18.
- Fix your dates. The clock runs from acceptance or deemed acceptance. If your purchase orders, delivery notes and invoices do not carry clean dates, you will spend the hearing arguing about the start line instead of the money.
- State the interest on the invoice. The statutory rate is compound, at three times the RBI bank rate. Putting it on the invoice from day one makes it far easier to claim later.
- Decide before you sell, not after. If a buyer's stated terms run past 45 days, that is a working-capital decision about whether to take the order. It is not a legal problem to solve afterwards.
The honest caveat
We build and run commerce operations for Indian D2C brands. We are not lawyers, and this post is a reading of a public press release, not advice on your situation. Before you act on any of it, take the specifics to your CA or counsel.
If quick commerce is a meaningful share of your revenue, the fee side matters as much as the payment side. Our fee breakdown across Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart is here.
If you would rather have one team wire the commerce side of this together — catalogue, dispatch, reconciliation and the store it all hangs off — that is what we do. Book a Strategy Call.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the MSMED Amendment 2026 apply to my brand?
It applies where the supplier is a registered micro or small enterprise. Udyam registration is voluntary and free, and the amendment makes the portal permanent in the Act. Without registration you have no standing under Sections 15 to 18.
How long can a buyer legally take to pay an MSME?
Section 15 caps it at the agreed period and in any event 45 days from acceptance or deemed acceptance of the goods or services. Where there is no written agreement, the period is 15 days.
What interest can I charge on a delayed MSME payment?
Section 16 provides for compound interest with monthly rests at three times the bank rate notified by the RBI. Sections 15 to 23 override a contract term that says otherwise, so a no-interest clause does not hold.
What is the 50% rule in the MSMED Amendment 2026?
If a buyer applies to set aside an award and that application is still pending after six months, the court is required to order payment of at least 50% of the awarded amount to the micro or small supplier.
Can I force a quick-commerce platform to pay me through TReDS?
No. The TReDS mandate in the amendment covers Central Public Sector Enterprises, with an enabling mechanism for states to nudge their own PSEs. Private marketplaces and quick-commerce platforms are outside its scope.
Source: Press Information Bureau, Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, 7 August 2026.
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