FPIs Reduce Stakes In Paytm Below 1%

Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) Societe Generale, Tiger Pacific Master Fund and UBS Principal Capital Asia have reduced their holdings in Paytm parent One97 Communications below 1% in the September ended quarter.

In the June quarter, Societe Generale held 1.98% stake, UBS Principal Capital Asia 1.06% and Tiger Pacific Master Fund 1.03%. 

By the end of September, these stakes fell below 1%, resulting in their exclusion from the latest publicly available data.

The overall FPI ownership in the company dropped to 16.77% in the quarter ending in September, from 20.04% in the previous quarter.

On the contrary, the company witnessed a 1% rise in Indian mutual fund stake during the quarter under review from 6.8% in June to 7.86% in September.

Shares of Paytm ended Thursday’s trading session 3.47% lower at INR 696.35 on the BSE.

This comes at a time when Paytm is doubling down on its artificial intelligence play and has appointed its CTO Manmeet Dhody as “AI Fellow” to drive its projects related to AI innovation in business. 

However, it is pertinent to note that the company has also attributed its mass layoff spree to AI adoption. Earlier, sources told Inc42 that Paytm has been adopting AI wherever possible to drive up efficiency since last year, resulting in layoffs. The company has laid off hundreds of employees since 2023.

Earlier in August, the company also sold its entertainment ticketing business to Zomato for INR 2,048 Cr in an all-cash deal.

Recently, the startup’s founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma also expressed regret on his choice of investment bankers for the company’s initial public offering (IPO). “I have been an entrepreneur long enough now. I have a regret of not choosing the correct bankers for the IPO,” Sharma said last month.