During intraday trading on the NSE on Monday, shares of One 97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm, decreased by 4.69%. This decline followed a significant management change, with Manmeet Singh Dhody resigning from his position as Chief Technology Officer - Payments, effective October 4. Dhody will now serve as an AI Fellow within the company. The recent changes highlight the importance of staying informed about share market investment trends.
Leadership transition
The board has appointed Deependra Singh Rathore as the new Chief Technology Officer—Payments, effective the same date. Rathore previously held the position of Senior Vice President of technology at Paytm and has been with the company and its affiliate, Paytm Payments Bank, since January 2016.
In his role at Paytm, Rathore has played a crucial part in driving AI-led strategic initiatives. He is responsible for designing and implementing payment products and services. His contributions include enhancing payment technologies to offer comprehensive solutions for both merchants and customers. Before joining Paytm, Rathore worked as an engineering manager at Agnity and Snapdeal from 2004 to 2016.
Stock upgrade and future outlook
Recently, domestic brokerage firm Emkay upgraded Paytm's stock rating from 'Reduce' to 'Add.' The brokerage raised its target price for the stock by 100%, increasing it from ₹375 to ₹750 per share.
Emkay analysts noted that a more lenient regulatory environment could facilitate approvals from the NPCI or National Payments Corporation of India and RBI or Reserve Bank of India (RBI). This will enable the onboarding of new users and online merchants, driving a potential turnaround for the business. Furthermore, the company’s cost optimisation efforts are expected to position it on a path to early profitability.
"We upgrade Paytm to ‘Add,’ revising up our discounted cash flow (DCF)-based target price to ₹750 per share, from ₹375," the analysts stated.
Paytm's position in the fintech market
Paytm is recognised as India’s foremost mobile payments and financial services company. It is credited with popularising mobile QR payments. As a pioneer in the fintech sector, Paytm has developed various technologies to aid small businesses in managing payments and commerce.
Recently, the company diversified its offerings by expanding into insurance, equity broking, and wealth distribution, creating new cross-selling opportunities. Additionally, Paytm divested its entertainment ticketing business to Zomato for ₹2,048 crore, allowing it to focus more on its core payment and financial services.
At 11:23 AM on the NSE, One 97 Communications’ stock price showed an increase of 4.57%, reaching ₹663.35. In contrast, the NSE’s Nifty50 index saw a slight decline of 0.12%, resting at 24,983.95.
Key takeaways
This development underscores the dynamic nature of share market investment, especially in the fintech sector.
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