Set up under the guidance of Mr. Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Paytm was founded in 2010 as a mobile wallet company.
However, ever since it started operations in 2014, Paytm has grown to become India’s leading mobile e-commerce website for both consumers and merchants, with an active user base of over 350 million and a marketplace of over 20 million merchants. At $16 Billion, it is currently the most valued startup in India.
Paytm is one of India’s largest mobile and online payment systems and a great place to shop. The service is simple, secure, and accepted at millions of merchant locations across India.
With Paytm, you can shop online, recharge your phone, pay utility bills, deposit & withdraw money from bank accounts, send/receive money instantly, or sell to customers, all with the Paytm Wallet.
Now, it plans to make its debut in the market by launching an Initial Public Offering (IPO) later this year. Paytm will soon be listed on the Indian stock exchanges, a rare move for an internet business, mainly relying on a steady inflow of venture capital and private equity money.
Here is what this buzz has created in the market:
Paytm share price doubles to Rs 24,000 in grey market on IPO buzz; should you buy it ahead of IPO? #paytm #IPO #stockshttps://t.co/oFVqBKrYnW
— FinancialXpress (@FinancialXpress) June 2, 2021
Paytm is making strides towards development in all regions. They have embarked on a journey towards transforming the entire payments ecosystem in India.
Their core focus is to simplify and secure our consumers’ everyday lives through a range of affordable payment solutions, intending to enable them to pay for anything anytime from anywhere. For this purpose, the company has put in place a vast list of features that help users manage their investments easier.
Paytm’s Future Plans
Paytm Money is on a mission to democratize wealth creation by empowering everyone, especially those in small cities and towns, to invest and make meaningful money.
It is building its offerings to cover all aspects of the savings funnel, which includes enabling users with access to financial products that they can use to transform their dreams into reality.
Public market debuts in India can raise the profile of a company, and part of its appeal lies in the opportunity to gain from an upswing in investor sentiments. So, it is eyeing a valuation of approximately $32 billion from this venture, which places the company at a 56 percent spike from its current valuation.
In recent times, digital wallets have gone through a sea change with the entry of newer payment modes like Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Bharat QR. These payments no doubt offer convenience but are not that safe compared to the traditional cash payment methods.
Paytm has come up with a new plan to compete with this challenge – set up a new umbrella entity for its digital payments business, which will operate under a banking license.
Paytm has applied to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to convert its payments bank into a small finance bank.
Paytm has stated that the main idea behind this move is to expand the business area into other financial services verticals under a single entity, which it describes as the New Umbrella Entity (NUE). These steps are being taken to establish a respected, safe online platform accessible to all people.