BIG win for Vijay Shekhar Sharma as Paytm posts first-ever profit of Rs...

Paytm has reported its first-ever consolidated net profit at Rs 122.5 crore in the quarter ended June 2025, mainly on account of cost optimisation and an increase in payment revenue. Fintech firm One97 Communications, which owns the Paytm brand, had posted a net loss of Rs 840 crore in the year-ago period. "EBITDA and PAT turned profitable at Rs 72 crore and Rs 123 crore respectively, demonstrating AI-led operating leverage, disciplined cost structure and higher other income," Paytm said in a statement. The company currently has a market cap of Rs 67147 crore, as of July 22. Its shares closed at Rs 1,053.10 on NSE on Tuesday.

How Paytm becomes profitable

The company slashed marketing and promotional expenses by more than half to Rs 99.8 crore during the reported quarter from Rs 221.4 crore a year ago and Rs 142.7 crore in the March 2025 quarter. Paytm reduced employee benefits by about Rs 300 crore or one-third to about Rs 643 crore from Rs 952.5 crore on a year-over-year basis.

While the company increased sales employee cost by 19 per cent on a YoY basis to Rs 266 crore, it recorded a reduction in non-sales employee cost by 28 per cent YoY to Rs 346 crore due to the use of artificial intelligence in various processes across its business.

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Paytm’s average number of sales employees increased by 23 per cent YoY basis to 38,945. The consolidated revenue from operations in the reporting quarter increased by about 28 per cent to Rs 1,917.5 crore from Rs 1,501.6 crore in the June 2024 quarter mainly on account of an increase in payment processing margins. “In the first quarter of FY’25, payment services revenue (including other operating revenue) was up 23 per cent YoY at Rs 1,110 crore. Net payment revenue was up 38 per cent YoY at Rs 529 crore due to an increase in payment processing margin and device,” the company said.

Paytm reported 27 per cent YoY increase in gross merchandise value to Rs 5.39 lakh crore in the reported quarter. The company said that merchant subscriptions were at an all-time high of 1.3 crore, an increase of 21 lakh YoY, on the back of high-quality devices and superior service network as of June 2025.

Decline in ESOP

Paytm reported an 88 per cent decline in ESOP (employee stock ownership plan) costs to Rs 30 crore from Rs 169 crore in the March quarter and Rs 247 crore a year ago. The company had made ESOP cost-related adjustments in the March quarter when its CEO, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, voluntarily surrendered his ESOPs.