Paytm sees a big jump in loan disbursals, run rate reaches Rs 34,000 cr in September

Fintech giant Paytm’s loans distribution business saw its annualised run rate touch Rs 34,000 crore in the month of September.    Commenting on this milestone, the company’s official statement, highlighted, “We continue to see growth and upsell opportunities in this business, while we work with our partners to remain focused on the quality of the book,”   The NSE-listed firm, owned by the parent company One97 Communication, also reported a 224 per cent increase in the number of loans disbursed which touched 9.2 million in the quarter that ended on September 30, 2022.    These numbers were submitted by the company as an update on its operating performance to the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange on October 10 in accordance with the SEBI Regulations.    The Vijay Shekhar Sharma-led company is also strengthening its offline presence as it reported the deployment of 4.8 million devices at merchant stores across the company. “With our subscription as a service model, the strong adoption of devices drives higher payment volumes, and subscription revenues, while increasing the funnel for our merchant loan distribution,” the official release read.    The company also pointed out a 39 per cent increase (year-on-year) in the monthly transacting users which stood at 79.7 million for the second quarter of this year. Additionally, the gross merchandise value, or the merchant payment values, were reported to be Rs 3.18 lakh crore for this quarter.    American multinational investment bank, JP Morgan, recently said that the company is undergoing a shift of sorts wherein it has moved away from “growth at any loss” to “profitability at scale”. It also suggested that Paytm’s stock has the potential to hit the Rs 1,000 mark, suggesting an upside of about 50 percent.   Even Goldman Sachs, another prominent global brokerage firm, suggested similar sensibilities for Paytm’s stock. Goldman Sachs is bullish that the share price can touch as much as Rs 1,100, an almost 60 per cent rise from its previous close.