Paytm Rises Over 9% As Vijay Shekhar Sharma Aims For $100-Billion Valuation

Shares of Paytm parent One97 Communications Ltd. rose over 9% after Chief Executive Officer Vijay Shekhar Sharma said that it is his personal ambition to build a $100-billion company.

Speaking at the 7th JIIF Foundation Day, Sharma said he wants the Paytm brand to be recognised globally as an Indian company. Listing a company brings more responsibility and maturity that has its own value and joy, he said.

He spoke about his learnings from the action taken by the Reserve Bank of India on Paytm Payments Bank Ltd. "At a professional level, I would say we should have done better, there are no secrets about it; we had responsibilities, we should have fulfilled much better." Individually, it was an emotional setback, he said.

Earlier this year, Paytm Payments Bank came under the regulatory glare as RBI ordered it to stop accepting new deposits in its accounts and digital wallet from March, on the grounds of "material supervisory concerns" and non-compliance with rules.

Since then, shares of the company have fallen 22.15%. When asked how he felt after erosion in share price of the company after its listing, Sharma said his focus was and is always on the company's fundamentals and business dynamics. The company works hard in its business, he said. "Stock market or public market will understand in due course and things will sort out in due course."

The scrip rose as much as 9.93% to Rs 479.90 apiece, the highest level since Feb. 8. It pared gains to trade 8.03% higher at Rs 471.60 apiece, as of 3.15 p.m. This compares to a 0.08% decline in the NSE Nifty 50.

It has fallen 42.74% in the last 12 months. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 2.29 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 73, indicating that it was overbought.

Out of 19 analysts tracking the company, five maintain a 'buy' rating, five recommend a 'hold', and seven suggest 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target implies a downside of 15.6%.