Vijay Shekhar Sharma To Purchase 10.30% Stake In Paytm From Antfin, Stock Jumps 11%

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder chairman and managing director of Paytm parent One97 Communications, has entered into an agreement to acquire 10.3 per cent of the company’s shares from with Ant Financial, the company informed the exchanges on 7 August.

According to the filing, Sharma’s 100 per cent owned overseas entity, Resilient Asset Management BV, will buy the stake in Paytm from Antfin through an off-market transfer.

Antfin will be issued Optionally Convertible Debentures (OCDs) by Resilient Asset Management BV in consideration for the transfer and to retain the economic value, as per the agreement.

On the closing of this transaction, Sharma’s stake in Paytm, both direct and indirect, will increase to 19.42 per cent, whereas Antfin’s stake will reduce to 13.5 per cent. Sharma will become Paytm’s largest shareholder, replacing Antfin.

"I am proud of Paytm's role as a true champion of made-in-India financial innovation and our achievements in revolutionising mobile payments and contributing to formal financial services inclusion in the country. As we announce this transfer of ownership, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Ant for their unwavering support and partnership over the past several years," Sharma wrote on Twitter after the deal.

The stake purchase would be worth around $628 million based on Friday’s closing price of Rs 796 per share.

Paytm’s stock surged over 11 per cent in the early trade on Monday after the announcement. The stock jumped as high as 11.57 per cent to hit Rs 887.55 per share on the BSE.

Shares of Paytm have rallied nearly 50 per cent so far on a year-to-date basis. The stock has witnessed a recovery after falling to an all-time low of Rs 438, which was nearly 80 per cent below its listing price of Rs 2,150. The financial services platform reported a narrowing of its loss to Rs 358.4 crore in its June quarter of FY2024.