Paytm Reported 51.5 Percent Rise in Q4 Revenue, Posted Profit for Second Consecutive Quarter

Indian digital payments firm Paytm reported a 51.5 percent rise in fourth-quarter revenue on Friday, aided by a surge in loan growth, and posted an operating profit for a second consecutive quarter.

Paytm's parent, One 97 Communications, said revenue rose to Rs. 23.35 billion in the January-March quarter, from Rs. 15.41 billion a year earlier.

Operating profit, which the company defines as core profit before cost of employee stock-owning plans, was Rs. 2.34 billion, including Rs. 1.82 billion paid for the full year from a government scheme to incentivise UPI payments, compared with a loss of Rs. 3.68 billion a year earlier.

That was still higher than the Rs. 310 million in the previous quarter, which was the SoftBank-backed firm's first-ever operating profit since it went public in November 2021.

Paytm's consolidated net loss narrowed to Rs. 1.68 billion, from Rs. 7.61 billion a year earlier. Loans distributed through Paytm more than tripled to Rs. 125.54 billion, powering an 183 percent surge in revenue in its fast-growing financial services business.

Revenue at Paytm's two biggest divisions, from payments services to consumers and to merchants, rose 12 percent and 61 percent, respectively.

Its contribution margin — a measure of revenue less cashbacks and charges such as payment processing — rose to 55 percent, from 35 percent a year earlier.

© Thomson Reuters 2023