Paytm's Founder and CEO, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, will acquire a 10.30% stake in the company from Antfin through his overseas entity, Resilient Asset Management B.V. This acquisition will increase Sharma's total shareholding in Paytm to 19.42% while reducing Antfin's shareholding to 13.5%. The transaction will be completed at the prevailing market price, with the 10.30% stake valued at $628 million as of 4 August 2023.
Resilient will issue optionally convertible debentures to Antfin in exchange for the stake, allowing Antfin to retain the economic value of the shares. No cash payment or guarantees will be provided by Sharma for the acquisition.
Despite the transaction, there will be no change in the management or control of Paytm, and Sharma will continue to serve as its managing director and CEO. Paytm remains a professionally managed company with no identifiable promoter, and there is no nominee from Antfin on the company's board.
Paytm is India's leading mobile payments and financial services distribution company. Pioneer of the mobile QR payments revolution in India, Paytm builds technologies that help small businesses with payments and commerce.
The company reported reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 357 crore in Q1 FY24 as against a net loss of Rs 644.40 crore in Q1 FY23. Revenue from operations jumped 39.4% YoY to Rs 2,341.60 crore in Q1 FY24.
Paytm's lending business witnessed a 148% year on year growth in disbursement to Rs 5,194 crore ($632 million) in the month of July 2023. For the month of July 2023, the number of loans disbursed jumped 46% year on year to 43 lakh.
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