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Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s fintech has reported its first operationally profitable quarter. However, he will need to wait to win back the regulator’s trust for Paytm to scale further.

The central bank’s shift to a 100% collateral requirement threatens to erode leverage, reduce volumes and force a consolidation across prop desks.
High returns, RBI-regulated comfort, and easy withdrawals drew investors in. Now, with repayments drying up, the fintech platform, its NBFC partner, and the regulator are pointing fingers—leaving customers to chase their own money.
An NBFC licence and a string of approvals give the fintech firm a fresh shot at relevance. But patchy execution, intense competition and a stagnant core cast doubt on whether it can capitalize on the opportunity.