Paytm Crosses $1 Bn In Revenue In FY23 And Controls Losses By 26%

(CTN News) – During the fiscal year ending March 2023, Paytm’s revenue from operations increased by 60.6% to Rs 7,990 crore, compared to Rs 4,974 crore in FY22, according to its consolidated annual financial statements.

In addition, Paytm’s non-operating income increased by 41% to Rs 409 crore during FY23, bringing its overall revenue to Rs 8,400 crore or over $1 billion.

Over 37% of total expenditures were attributed to employee benefits. FY23 saw a 55.3% increase in this cost over FY22, which was Rs 2,432 crore. Employee share-based compensation increased by 80% in FY23, totaling Rs 1,456 crore, which can also be attributed to increased employee costs.

A total of 29% of total expenses were attributed to payment processing, which increased 20.5% to Rs 2,958 crore during the fiscal year. The cost was estimated at Rs 2,454 crores in FY22.

Furthermore, promotional expenses and IT infrastructure expenses (software, cloud and data center expenses) increased by 25.8% and 38.8%, respectively, in FY23 to Rs 1,076 crore and Rs 694 crore, respectively. The total expenditures of Paytm in FY23 increased 33.3% from Rs 7,601 crore in FY22 to Rs 10,130 crore.

The company managed to reduce its annual losses by 26% to Rs 1,776 crore in FY23 compared to Rs 2,396 crore the previous year, despite an increase in expenses of over 30%.

Additionally, the company’s top and bottom lines improved during the year, resulting in a positive operating cash flow of Rs 415.6 crore compared to a negative operating cash flow of Rs 1,236 crore in FY22.

Paytm’s EBITDA margin and ROCE have strengthened to -14.54% and -12.66%, respectively. For every rupee of operating income generated by the company in FY23, the company spent Rs 1.27.

On a quarterly basis, Paytm’s revenues increased 13.2% to Rs 2,334 crore during Q4 of FY23 from Rs 2,062 crore during Q3 of the same fiscal year. In Q4, the company’s losses decreased by 57.4% to Rs 167 crore, compared to Rs 392 crore during the third quarter of FY23.

According to Entrackr’s analysis of the document, Paytm has used approximately half of its net IPO proceeds of Rs 8,113 crore as of March of 2023. In the proposed offer document, Paytm allocated Rs 4,300 crore to marketing, merchants, and its payment platform, Rs 2,000 crore to investments and acquisitions, and Rs 1,813.4 crore to general corporate purposes.

Although Paytm’s generous ESOPS have been cited as a drag on its future, the firm does seem to be developing a sustainable business model. Based on Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s comments, the fourth quarter was the second consecutive quarter of EBITDA profitability (without ESOPS).

In a market where the payments business is performing well, the loans business is performing well, and a number of other promising segments are at play, the company would do well to trigger its exits quickly, where traction is not evident.

There is much to look forward to in FY24-25, and it remains to be seen if the company can regain its position as an investor favorite.

In November 2021, Paytm was listed on the Indian Stock Exchange at a price of Rs 2,080-2,150 per share. The share price of the company fell below Rs 600 within six months.

A share of the company currently trades for between Rs 670 and Rs 690 per share, and its market capitalization is approximately Rs 43,700 crores, or approximately $5.4 billion.

SEE ALSO:

Reverse Mortgage Calculator: How It Works, And What Factors Affect Your Payout