WhatsApp is set to launch peer-to-peer payments in India without its full roster of partners amid concerns the company is falling behind rivals, The Economic Times (ET) reported.

The Facebook-owned messaging app was expected to release the service with four of the country’s largest banks. However, after revelations The State Bank of India is not fully prepared, it will likely go live with three to avoid waiting much longer.

WhatsApp is already lagging in social payments, with messaging rival Hike unveiling its cash transfer service in June 2017 and payments app Paytm adding chat to its service in November.

Google made its play for a slice of the country’s peer-to-peer money transfer market to much fanfare in September 2017, and added a chat facility to the Tez platform in March.

According to the ET’s sources the swift progress made by competitors forced a rethink on WhatsApp’s timeline and – as three of its four partner banks are ready to launch – the service is set to go live as early as next week.

The service has been in beta testing since February 2018 and no formal launch date has ever been put forward publicly by the company.

WhatsApp has around 200 million users in India and is widely considered to be the leading messaging provider in the country.