SoftBank offloads another 2% stake in Paytm worth Rs 950 Cr

SoftBank has reduced its holding in One97 Communications, which owns Paytm, by 2%, according to a media report citing a US SEC filing. The sale netted the investor nearly Rs 950 crore.

The investment giant's stake in the fintech giant has now been reduced to just a little over 5% versus 13.24% at the beginning of FY24, the ET report added.

SoftBank sold an aggregate of 12.7 million shares of Paytm between December 19, 2023 and January 20, 2024 in the open market, according to reports.

SVF India Holdings (Cayman), SoftBank's India entity, has been offloading its stake in the fintech company for quite some time through multiple transactions. In July, it sold off 2.01%, after selling another 2% just two months prior. Since the beginning of FY24, it has sold shares worth Rs 3,800 crore in Paytm.

SoftBank has relieved its stake in a bunch of Indian tech startups, including Zomato and Delhivery. It has invested nearly $15 billion in Indian companies so far.

However, it marked up its investments in Swiggy, FirstCry, and Ola Electric in November.

Paytm's other big investor, Ant Financial, has also reduced its holding in the Noida-based fintech company over the last year. It transferred a 10.3% stake in the company to its CEO and Founder, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, and sold some more to buyers such as Societe Generale, Morgan Stanley Asia Singapore, BNP Paribas Arbitrage, etc.

Paytm pared its loss to Rs 222 crore in the October-December 2023 quarter on the back of a 38% rise in its revenue.

Its main business units—payments and financial services, as well as commerce and cloud services—experienced solid growth.