Paytm stake sale sees Reliance Capital making a cool 27-fold return; co now valued $4.8 bn
In December last year, Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma had sold 1 percent of his holding in One97 Communications, the parent firm of the digital payments firm, to raise about Rs 325 crore.
Reliance Capital has sold its nearly 1 percent stake in popular digital payments firm Paytm for Rs 275 crore to China's Alibaba Group.
The deal saw the Anil Ambani-led group firm's investment giving 27-fold return over six years and valuing the company at $4.8 billion, second only to Flipkart in Indian e-commerce space.
The financial services arm of Reliance Group had invested Rs 10 crore for this stake in Paytm in 2010.
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Paytm is already backed by Alibaba group as a strategic investor.
Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder, Paytm
Sources told PTI that Reliance Capital has retained a stake in Paytm e-Commerce, which it had got free of cost by virtue of the investment in the parent firm. In the latest fund-raising round, Paytm e-Commerce was valued at $1 billion.
Paytm E-commerce is the marketplace of the company, through which the Chinese giant is making its India entry.
A Reliance Capital spokesperson declined to comment on the deal while Paytm spokesperson also did not comment.
Earlier, Reliance Capital had said it would trim its proprietary investment portfolio as part of its plans to monetise non-core assets.
In December last year, Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma had sold 1 percent of his holding in One97 Communications, the parent firm of the digital payments firm, to raise about Rs 325 crore.
This money was to be pumped into the group's payments bank operations, which are slated to commence soon.
Alibaba Singapore E-commerce, along with investment firm SAIF Partners, is also slated to invest $200 million in Paytm's online marketplace unit.
With PTI inputs
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Alibaba Group and its affiliate Ant Financial pumped in $680 million into Paytm's parent One97 Communications last year, taking its total shareholding to over 40 percent in the country's largest mobile wallet operator with close to 160 million customers.
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Paytm founder sells 1% in One97 Communications for Rs 325 cr
At the end of March this year, Sharma held over 21 percent stake in One97 Communications.