As VC IPO exits grab headlines, Elevation’s 85x Paytm return stands out
Through a vehicle called SAIF III Mauritius Company Limited, the VC firm sold shares of Paytm worth Rs 1092 crore in a bulk deal on Tuesday. Those shares were originally acquired for just Rs 12.88 crore at Rs 15.4 apiece.
Over the past week, India’s startup ecosystem has been obsessed with one storyline: the wave of venture-backed companies finally heading to the public markets and the VC returns they are unlocking. But tucked amid these fresh listings is an older bet that has suddenly turned into one of the most spectacular venture outcomes India has seen in years.
Elevation Capital—still remembered in industry circles by its former name SAIF Partners—has just booked a blockbuster payoff on an 18-year-old bet: Paytm.
As per NSE data, in a bulk deal on Tuesday, Elevation sold a near 2% stake in Paytm, which it had held through SAIF III Mauritius Company Limited.
The VC firm, which had bought these shares for just Rs 12.88 crore at Rs 15.4 apiece, offloaded the stock at Rs 1,305 per piece, netting a fund of Rs 1,092 crore—an extraordinary 84.7x return in the public markets.
A second entity, SAIF Partners India IV Limited, also exited a portion of its stake. Those shares, acquired for Rs 108 crore at Rs 305.6 each, fetched Rs 463 crore, translating to a 4.2x gain at the same selling price.
SAIF Partners originally started as SoftBank Asia Infrastructure Fund in 2001 and was an affiliate of SoftBank before eight SAIF Partners came to an agreement with SoftBank to form an independent entity and launch a new $643-million fund.
SAIF Partners led One97 Communications’ first big institutional round in 2007, when the company was valued at about Rs 100 crore. Back then, One97 Communications, the parent of Paytm, was just a value-added telecom service provider.
Later, SoftBank also invested in Paytm. After its public market debut in November 2021, SoftBank reduced its direct stakes in Paytm. By early 2024, the Japanese investor fully exited Paytm, taking a $544-million loss from the investment.
As per Paytm’s Q2 shareholding disclosures, Elevation held its stake through two investment vehicles: SAIF III Mauritius Company Limited with 10.76%, and SAIF Partners India IV Limited with 4.57%.
The timing of Elevation's stake sale is notable because Paytm’s stock is back on the front foot only now after several punishing years. The company listed in November 2021 at Rs 2,150 in what was then India’s largest IPO. The market rejected the valuation from day one, and by late 2022 the stock had already lost about 75% of its value amid global tech weakness.
Sentiment stabilised through 2023 as revenues grew and losses narrowed, but the real blow came on January 31, 2024, when the Reserve Bank of India clamped down on Paytm Payments Bank. The ban on new deposits and key transactions triggered a brutal three-session crash of roughly 20%, then 20%, then 10%, and the slide continued. By May 2024 the stock had collapsed to Rs 317, its all-time low.
Paytm spent the next year rewiring its entire model. It leaned hard into merchant monetisation and non-banking revenue streams while preparing to operate without its payments-bank affiliate. Management slashed non-sales employee costs by using AI to automate internal functions. It chose not to replace certain roles, and also cut marketing spending to focus on product-led growth. AI also helped trim cloud, software and data-centre expenses, while revenue rose consistently across quarters.
Eventually, the company returned to profitability in Q1 of FY26.
All this set the stage for a rebound. By November 2025, the Paytm stock touched Rs 1,353.80, a multi-year high and a stunning recovery from the lows of 2024.
On Tuesday, Paytm’s shares slipped 0.76% to Rs 1,285.70, easing after a sharp rally and reacting to the stake sale by Elevation and the broader profit-booking in the counter.
Edited by Swetha Kannan