 "Amitabh Chaudhry, CEO, Axis Bank")
Private sector lender Axis Bank is willing to work with Paytm if the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) gives its approval, said Amitabh Chaudhry, the bank’s managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO).
“Subject to regulatory approval, and if the regulator allows us to work with Paytm, we will of course work with them. They are an important player in the fintech industry,” Chaudhry said during the launch of the bank’s ‘2023 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500’ list.
Another official from the private sector lender added that the bank has been in discussion with Paytm for general business and after January 31, 2024, new aspects are being discussed.
Arjun Chowdhry, group executive, affluent banking, NRI, cards and payments, Axis Bank, said, “We are having conversations with Paytm for our normal business services. Post the development on January 31, we are discussing new things,” Chowdhry said.
The RBI, on January 31, asked Paytm Payments Bank to refrain from accepting fresh deposits and carrying out transactions from February 29, 2024, citing “persistent non-compliance” and “material supervisory concerns”.
Recently, HDFC Bank’s payment head Parag Rao said the bank is talking and evaluating the developments at Paytm. It has also seen significant traction of customers on HDFC Bank’s application post the RBI order on the payments bank.
Separately, One97 Communications, parent company of Paytm, informed the exchanges on Monday that Manju Agarwal, independent director, Paytm Payments Bank, had tendered her resignation from the board on February 1. It was due to her personal commitments and was noted by the board on February 6. One97 Communications had announced on February 9 the formation of a group advisory committee chaired by former Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) chairman M Damodaran.
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On Monday, Burgundy and Hurun India launched ‘2023 Burgundy Private Hurun India 500’, the third edition of the list of 500 most valuable companies in India.
The companies’ part of the list accounted for 28 per cent of India’s gross domestic product (GDP) and collectively created a value of Rs 231 trillion for their stakeholders. It is more than the combined GDP of Saudi Arabia, Switzerland, and Singapore.
Reliance Industries, with a value of Rs 15.6 trillion has emerged as India’s most valuable company followed by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and HDFC Bank.
Among sectors, financial services saw a growth of 20 per cent in value, followed by healthcare (8 per cent) and consumer goods (7 per cent).
Axis Bank itself has achieved a significant milestone in the banking space with its wealth management business rising by 78 per cent compared to the year-ago period.
On the other hand, the year was quite difficult for startups with the industry losing a cumulative Rs 4 trillion. It was led by Byjus, Dealshare and Pharmeasy. They failed to make it in the Hurun list this year.
“As the funding situation improves, we expect more value creation from startups, especially in sectors that focus on the future. These are artificial intelligence (AI), spacetech and electric vehicles, among others,” said Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and chief researcher, Hurun India.
