Paytm shares surge 2% on strong operating performance in August

Shares of One97 Communications (Paytm) surged on Tuesday after the company said its loan growth was strong during the two months ended August. The company reported manifold growth in loan disbursal and loan value.

Its loan distribution business rose to 60 lakh loan disbursals during the two months ended August 2022, growing 246% year-on-year, aggregating to loan disbursements of Rs 4,517 crore, which grew 484%, the company said in an exchange filing on September 6.

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Paytm shares were up around 2% at Rs 724.75 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Loan disbursals were happening at an annualized run rate of Rs 29,000 crore ($3.6 billion) in August, it added.

The company said it continues to work with its partners to review the evolving macro environment and accordingly moderation may be expected in the firm’s growth. The company continues to see solid growth and upsell opportunities in the business and focuses on the quality of the book, it added.

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“The total merchant gross merchandise value (GMV) processed through our platform for the two months ended August 2022 aggregated to Rs 2.10 lakh crore ($26 billion), marking a YoY growth of 72%,” the firm said.

The company said the Paytm Super App continues to see growth in consumer engagement for the company’s comprehensive payment offerings. “We continue to drive user engagement, with the average monthly tracked user (MTU) for the two months ended August 2022 at 78.8 million, registering a growth of 40% YoY,” Paytm said.

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The development comes at a time when the shares were under pressure due to the Enforcement Directorate raid on the company’s offices in connection with the Chinese loan app case.

ICICI Securities is bullish on the stock and has a target of Rs 1285 on the stock.

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Paytm is India’s payment super app offering consumers and merchants comprehensive payment services. Paytm offers commerce for small merchants and distributes various financial services offerings to its consumers and merchants in partnership with financial institutions.

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In the April-June quarter of the financial year 2022-23, Paytm reported a consolidated loss of Rs 644.4 crore against a loss of Rs 380.2 crore in the corresponding quarter of the last financial year. However, the digital payments platform’s revenue surged up 88.5% to Rs 1,679.6 core on a year-on-year basis.