WhatsApp has won regulatory approval to double the number of users on its payments service in India to 40 million, a source with direct knowledge told Reuters.

The company had requested that there should be no cap on users of its payment service in India.

Instead, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) this week told the company it could double the user base to which it can offer its payment service — currently restricted to 20 million — the source said.

WhatsApp is owned by Facebook, which recently changed its name to Meta.

The source said the new cap would still hinder the company’s growth prospects given that WhatsApp’s messenger service has more than 500 million users in India, the company’s biggest market.

It was not clear when the new cap would come into effect.

Meanwhile, the Indian government has advised people against subscribing to Starlink Internet Services, a division of billionaire Elon Musk’s SpaceX aerospace company, as it does not have a licence to operate in India.

A government statement said Starlink had been told to comply with regulations and refrain from “booking/rendering the satellite internet services in India with immediate effect”.

Starlink registered its business in India on November 1. It has begun advertising, and according to the government, it has started pre-selling its service.