Gautam Adani, the chairman of the Adani Group, is reportedly eyeing a stake in One 97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, according to sources. The sources revealed that Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the founder and CEO of Paytm, held discussions with Adani at his Ahmedabad office on Tuesday to finalize the terms of a potential deal. If negotiations are successful, it would mark the Adani Group's entry into the fintech sector, setting the stage for competition with established players like Google Pay, PhonePe (owned by Walmart), and Mukesh Ambani's Jio Financial.
If the deal between Gautam Adani and Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma materializes, it would mark a significant move for the Adani Group into the fintech sector, pitting them against established players such as Google Pay, PhonePe (owned by Walmart), and Mukesh Ambani's Jio Financial. This venture would represent one of Adani's major acquisitions following previous notable purchases like Ambuja Cements and NDTV.
Vijay Shekhar Sharma currently holds nearly 19 percent of One 97 Communications, valuing his stake at Rs 4,218 crore based on the closing price of Rs 342 per share on May 28. Sharma's ownership comprises 9 percent directly through his personal holdings in Paytm and an additional 10 percent indirectly through the overseas entity Resilient Asset Management. Both Sharma and Resilient are listed as public shareholders in One 97's filings with stock markets, as per reports.
On January 31, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed business restrictions on Paytm Payments Bank (PPBL), citing recurrent violations of regulations and non-compliance with multiple rules. As a consequence, the banking regulator prohibited PPBL from accepting new deposits and conducting credit transactions after February 29.