Shares of One 97 Communications, which owns Paytm, dropped by 5% to Rs 351.70 on Monday after Bhavesh Gupta resigned as the company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO). Gupta also held the position of President at Paytm. The company confirmed Gupta’s resignation in a filing to the stock exchanges. His last day with the company will be May 31, 2024.
At 12:48 PM, the stock price was down by 4.87% at Rs 351.90 on the National Stock Exchange. Gupta cited personal reasons for his resignation and mentioned his intention to take a career break. He expressed confidence in Paytm’s future and offered to support the company in an advisory capacity.
According to a report by ET, Paytm has seen several significant management changes lately amid regulatory challenges and uncertainty regarding the company’s direction.
In April, Surinder Chawla, the Managing Director and CEO of Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL), tendered his resignation, citing personal reasons and a quest for “enhanced career opportunities.” His tenure will conclude on June 26.
Furthermore, Paytm Money, the wealth management arm of One 97 Communications, revealed the selection of Rakesh Singh as its new CEO, taking over from Varun Sridhar, who had served as CEO since 2020. Sridhar has now assumed the position of CEO at Paytm Services Private Limited.
As per a company announcement, Paytm’s payment and credit operations are overseen by Chief Operating Officers and Chief Business Officers, each boasting over five years of tenure at Paytm and 20 to 26 years of industry expertise. This seasoned leadership team will now collaborate directly with Paytm’s CEO and other senior executives. The company is actively nurturing its next generation of leaders and implementing robust succession planning strategies.
Bank of America (BofA) has recently resumed its evaluation of One 97 Communications, assigning it an ‘Underperform’ rating and establishing a target price of Rs 400. The brokerage observed that Paytm is encountering fierce competition in the payments sector and anticipates lackluster fourth-quarter earnings. BofA attributes this trend to regulatory actions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI).
