Shares of Paytm surged by 5 per cent for the second consecutive session on May 30. The stock experienced a significant rally following reports that billionaire Gautam Adani is contemplating acquiring a stake in Paytm’s parent company, One97 Communications. The stock finally closed at ₹377.40 per share on Thursday.
However, Paytm later clarified that the report was purely speculative. “We hereby clarify that the above mentioned news item is speculative and the company is not engaged in any discussions in this regard. We have always made and will continue to make disclosures in compliance with our obligations under the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015,” the company said in a statement.
Meanwhile, Adani Group also issued a clarification, as quoted by media reports, “Categorically deny this baseless speculation, it is totally false and untrue”.
The denials followed a Times of India (TOI) report asserting that Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma had met with Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani in Ahmedabad. According to the newspaper, the two business leaders discussed “finalizing the contours of a deal,” citing unnamed sources.
This news follows a report by the Financial Times, a global business daily, stating that the Adani Group is planning to enter India’s fintech sector. This move would position the ports-to-power conglomerate as a direct competitor to Alphabet’s Google Pay, Walmart’s PhonePe, and Reliance Industries’ Jio Financials.
According to the TOI report, the potential acquisition of a stake in Paytm would be one of the Adani Group’s major acquisitions, following its previous acquisitions of Ambuja Cement and New Delhi Television Ltd (NDTV).
Notably, Paytm shares have been declining since the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) imposed restrictions on its banking division. From March onwards, the RBI has prohibited Paytm Payments Bank Ltd (PPBL) from onboarding new customers and issuing credit.
Year-to-date, Paytm’s stock has dropped by 41 per cent, and over the past 12 months, it has fallen by 46 per cent.
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Published: 30 May 2024, 05:19 PM IST
