Founders of Indian startups have come in support of Paytm's top boss Vijay Shekhar Sharma after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) ordered his payment bank to halt the business.
This week, the RBI ordered Paytm Payments Bank to stop accepting fresh deposits in its accounts or popular digital wallets from March. The action against Paytm Payments Bank followed years of non-compliance with central bank rules, including on customer due diligence, use of funds, and technology infrastructure.
After RBI's action, several founders of Indian startups have slammed the central bank and have defended Paytm's CEO.
Prafull Billore, owner and founder of MBA Chaiwala called Paytm boss Vijay Shekhar Sharma "a beacon for the company's future". Billore added, "Amidst stormy challenges, Vijay Shekhar Sharma steers Paytm with unwavering determination. A visionary leader, he navigates turbulence with resilience. In the face of adversity, Sharma's tenacity shines...Paytm's captain stands strong, charting a course to weather the toughest times".
In defence of Paytm CEO, Keval Bhanushali, CEO of 1 Finance said, "The basic difference between India & US will be the shallow mindset of seeking pleasure in an entrepreneur’s downfall. We have seen it in airlines and we are starting to see it in Fintech".
According to 1 Finance CEO, "Management changes should been an option before slamming things abruptly".
Ravi Karkara, co-founder of AI For Food tagged Paytm owner and wrote, "You will overcome and rise higher".
Startup Soshals' founder Kritarth Mittal said that Vijay Shekhar Sharma truly deserves "all the love, support and respect. The community stands with you, Vijay! This too shall pass".
In another post, Mittal shared photos of Byju's Paytm founders and wrote, "I'd rather be a Vijay Shekhar Sharma than a Raveendran Byju any day. Period".
On Thursday, BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover slammed the RBI for its action against Paytm. Grover criticised the restrictions on Paytm, terming them 'Doglapan'. He added that such moves from the RBI will kill the fintech in India. Grover also requested the PMO, finance ministry, and FM Nirmala Sitharaman to take redressive measures.
Meanwhile, Vijay Shekhar Sharma has said that RBI's curbs are more of a speed bump. Sharma added that the company will continue to decline and decrease the dependency on its associate bank and will see through by accelerating its partnership with other banks.
During a conference call with analysts, he informed that the company had already started to work with other banks two years back and will now accelerate the plan to move to other bank partners.
On 1 February, Paytm's share price witnessed huge selling pressure. Paytm shares opened lower at ₹608.80 apiece on BSE and touched a 20% lower circuit within a few minutes of the stock market's opening bell.
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