/
•
•
Context is everything.
Detailed stories on technology startups, business and economic current affairs.
Detailed stories on technology startups, business and economic current affairs.
The unicorn succeeded in its wallet business because its mission was to replace cash. The current organization is rudderless.
Editor's note: Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Paytm’s founder, and CEO carries his company’s pitch deck with him at all times. Depending on whether you are an admirer or a critic, and whether Sharma takes an interest in you, he’s quick to pull out the deck on his phone and put on the charm offensive. Paytm is rocking, he says, almost always. Gold, mutual funds, bus bookings, flights—Paytm is killing the competition. Sharma laces his frothy body language with easy to remember punchlines like “you won’t believe our numbers” and throws in reference terms like “we are No. 1” and “we were the pioneers of QR code”. For old-time Paytm watchers, this is a stark departure from the days when Sharma’s sell used to be just one number: The millions of Paytm wallet users. Like a pied piper, jet-setting through cities, speaking at industry conferences, Sharma would dazzle audiences with the sheer number of Indians using Paytm. In August 2015, he said Paytm has 100 million wallet users, the first for any digital product in India. He also said that cash usage is one …
The unicorn succeeded in its wallet business because its mission was to replace cash. The current organization is rudderless.
Editor's note: Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Paytm’s founder, and CEO carries his company’s pitch deck with him at all times. Depending on whether you are an admirer or a critic, and whether Sharma takes an interest in you, he’s quick to pull out the deck on his phone and put on the charm offensive. Paytm is rocking, he says, almost always. Gold, mutual funds, bus bookings, flights—Paytm is killing the competition. Sharma laces his frothy body language with easy to remember punchlines like “you won’t believe our numbers” and throws in reference terms like “we are No. 1” and “we were the pioneers of QR code”. For old-time Paytm watchers, this is a stark departure from the days when Sharma’s sell used to be just one number: The millions of Paytm wallet users. Like a pied piper, jet-setting through cities, speaking at industry conferences, Sharma would dazzle audiences with the sheer number of Indians using Paytm. In August 2015, he said Paytm has 100 million wallet users, the first for any digital product in India. He also said that cash usage is one …
The Rs 250 SIP was launched last year by the former SEBI chairperson with one clear goal: financial inclusion. More than a year later, the much-hyped scheme doesn’t seem to have caught on with MF investors.
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.
The fintech’s financial services business has done reasonably well in Q4 FY26. But upping its lending game without the NBFC tag will be a tall task.
The Rs 250 SIP was launched last year by the former SEBI chairperson with one clear goal: financial inclusion. More than a year later, the much-hyped scheme doesn’t seem to have caught on with MF investors.
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.
The fintech’s financial services business has done reasonably well in Q4 FY26. But upping its lending game without the NBFC tag will be a tall task.
