Paytm shares make weak debut; tumble over 27 pc

New Delhi, November 18

Shares of One97 Communications Ltd, Paytm's parent company, on Thursday made a weak market debut and tumbled over 27 per cent from the issue price of Rs 2,150.

The stock is listed at Rs 1,955, tumbling 9 per cent from the issue price on the BSE. During the day, it tumbled 27.25 per cent to Rs 1,564. It tanked 27.24 per cent to settle at Rs 1,564.15.

On the NSE, it debuted at Rs 1,950, registering a decline of 9.30 per cent against the issue price. The stock plunged 27.44 per cent to settle at Rs 1,560.

Addressing a gathering on the listing ceremony of One97 Communications, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Paytm said, "I believe that Paytm story inspires and hopefully will inspire tens of and hundreds of millions of entrepreneurs that this country will produce in years to come that yes they can do it.

"They can do it even when they come from backgrounds that were not meant to be making you reach here, they can reach here." The company commanded a market valuation of Rs 1,01,399.72 crore on the BSE. With the decline in the stock price, the company's market valuation eroded by Rs 37,600.28 crore.

"Paytm, the biggest IPO in India so far debuted the secondary market on a weaker note as compared to our expectations of a flat listing," Santosh Meena, Head of Research, Swastika Investment Ltd, said.

In traded volume terms, 10.06 lakh shares were traded at the BSE and over 2.39 crore shares at the NSE during the day.

“India's largest IPO of Paytm tumbled 27 per cent on its maiden day, with investors questioning its business model and lack of profits along with lofty valuations," Siddhartha Khemka, Head - Retail Research, Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd.

Ant Group-backed Paytm's Rs 18,300 crore IPO was oversubscribed 1.89 times on the last day of India's biggest share sale last week. This was greater than miner Coal India's Rs 15,000 crore offer a decade back.

"Paytm, formally called One97 Communications saw a dull response and got subscribed only 1.89 times from the investors which is much lower compared to the other recently listed companies," Parth Nyati, Founder, Tradingo said.

He added that they feel that due to the brand the company sought high valuation and it might see a correction in the near term. The initial public offering of Paytm's parent company One97 Communications Ltd received bids for 9.14 crore equity shares against the offer size of 4.83 crore shares, according to information available with stock exchanges on November 10.

Paytm had fixed its IPO in a price band of Rs 2,080-2,150 per share. Incorporated in 2000, One97 Communications is India's leading digital ecosystem for consumers and merchants.

It offers a range of services, including payment services and financial services.

"Mega IPO Paytm witnessed tepid listing today as concerns over valuation weighed on the stock," according to Binod Modi, Head Strategy at Reliance Securities.

In the equity market, the BSE 30-share benchmark index ended 372.32 points or 0.62 per cent lower at 59,636.01.

"Weak listing of India's largest IPO and soft global market amid rising inflation woes impacted domestic sentiment," Vinod Nair, head of Research at Geojit Financial Services said.

Launched by a son of a school teacher from a small town Aligarh nearly a decade ago as a platform for cellular recharging, Paytm grew rapidly after ride-hailing agency Uber listed it as a fast-cost possibility. PTI

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