PB Fintech added to key MSCI index, Paytm demoted to small cap

PolicyBazaar and Paisabazaar parent PB Fintech has bagged an entry into the MSCI India Index, which is a part of the MSCI Global Standard Index, while One97 Communications, the parent company of the Paytm brand, has been downgraded to the MSCI Emerging Markets Small Cap Index.

Following its addition to the Global Standard Index, PB Fintech may see maximum inflows worth $283 million. On the other hand, One97 may witness outflows worth $70 million or 17.2 million shares being sold after the rejig.

The MSCI India Index has seen 13 additions and three deletions in the May review. Companies including Indus Towers and Mankind Pharma were added to the list, while Bandhan Bank, Jubilant Foods, and others were removed.

Post exclusion from the Global Standard Index, One97 Communications was added to the Emerging Markets Small Cap Index, joining the likes of Aditya Birla Sunlife, Gillette India, and Inox India.

Since its addition to the MSCI Global Standard Index on November 30, 2023, One97 Communications has shed over than half of its market cap. Its stock price crashed after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) took measures Paytm's banking arm, Paytm Payment Banking Limited, on January 30.

Also Read

Paytm CBOs Ajay Vikram Singh, Bipin Kaul step down amid restructuring

However, by the end of the March quarter, domestic mutual funds had increased their holdings in Paytm to 6.15%, up from 4.99% at the close of the previous December quarter.

The MSCI Global Standard Index is a widely followed equity index that captures the performance of large- and mid-cap stocks across developed and emerging markets. It is a market-capitalisation-weighted index, meaning that the stocks in the index are weighted according to their market capitalisation.

The index is widely used by investors, financial analysts, and researchers as a benchmark for global equity portfolios and as a tool for asset allocation and performance measurement.