Vijay Shekhar Sharma, founder and CEO of Paytm, has said that the pioneer in digital payments will keep working beyond 29 February 2024. The Reserve Bank of India has directed the company to stop “onboarding of new customers” after the mentioned date due to “persistent non-compliances and continued material supervisory concerns in the bank, warranting further supervisory action”.
RBI, in its press release directed that no deposits or credit transactions or top ups will be allowed after 29 February, however, withdrawal or utilisation of balances by Paytm customers will be permitted without any restrictions, upto their available balance.
As the shares of Paytm’s parent company, One97 Communications Ltd (OCL), continued to plunge for the second day, its founder saluted his team members for their “relentless support”. His message also said, “For every challenge, there is a solution and we are sincerely committed to serve our nation in full compliance. India will keep winning global accolades in payment innovation and inclusion in financial services – with PaytmKaro as the biggest champion of it.”
In a press release on 1 February, One97 Communications Ltd had stated that it will pursue partnerships with various other banks, to offer various payment products to its customers. OCL’s other financial services such as loan distribution, insurance distribution and equity broking, are not in any way related to Paytm Payments Bank Limited and are expected to be unaffected by this direction.
The company also said that in the worst case, it expects to lose Rs 300 to 500 crores due to the action taken by RBI.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has alleged that OCL “made a lot of profit due to demonetization” with help from the government. She said that many common middle class Indians bought its shares in large numbers that have now fallen by 75 per cent from the launch date. “According to reports, a loss of around Rs 18,000 crore is being reported. This is the loss of earnings of thousands and lakhs of honest Indians who bought the shares of this company,” she claimed.
“All the institutions of the country are being destroyed under Modi ji’s rule. If SEBI and RBI were independent today, the money of the common Indian would have been saved from being lost,” Vadra added.
Her brother and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi supporting her statement said, “Paytm fraud is the biggest example of how the government has brought the country on the path of destruction by destroying the independence of institutions.”
