Looking at the numbers, we start to get a picture of Paytm, warts and all, over its lifetime.įirst, it is a growth company, if you define growth as growth in user count and number of transactions done on its platform, and perhaps in gross merchandise value. As Paytm's product suite has expanded, its numbers reflect both its strengths and weaknesses, with four key statistics tracking its expansion. In short, over time, it has used its platform of users to launch itself into almost every online activity. In 2018, it added a Paytm Money, for investment and wealth management, and in 2019, it launched a Paytm for Business app for merchants to track payments. In 2017 it added Paytm Gold, allowing users to buy gold in quantities as little as Re 1, and Paytm Payments Bank, a messaging platform with in-chat payments. In 2016, it added ticket booking to movies, events and amusement parks, with flight bookings soon after, and started Paytm Mall, a consumer shopping app, based upon Alibaba's Taobao Mall model. In 2014, it introduced Paytm Wallet, a digital wallet that was accepted as a payment option by leading service providers and retailers. As mobile access improved, Paytm has relentlessly added to its suite of products. When it was founded in 2010 by by Vijay Shekhar Sharma, it operated as a pre-paid mobile platform, but its market then was small both in terms of numbers and services offered. The rise of Paytm (Pay through Mobile) as a company parallels the rise of mobile phones in India.