Paytm shares tumble as SoftBank sells 4.5% stake worth $200 million
Tokyo-headquartered SoftBank Group Corp on Thursday sold a 4.5 per cent stake in Indian digital payments giant Paytm through block deals for $200 million, following which a sharp fall was reported in Paytm shares. The stock is being sold in a range of ₹555 to 601.45 per share, according to a term sheet reviewed by Reuters.
The developments come a day after the lock-in period for investors in Paytm's November 2021 initial public offering closed. Paytm shares fell by over 9 per cent on news of the trade.
The sale is the latest in a series of divestments that SoftBank has made this year.
SoftBank's flagship Vision Fund unit reported nearly $50 billion in losses in just six months. The shares were bought by hedge funds such as Millennium Capital, Segantii Capital Management, and Ghisallo Capital Management. Norges Bank, Norway's central bank too bought the Paytm shares, news agency Reuters reported.
As of September 30, SoftBank had a 17.5 per cent stake in Paytm. The company had invested $1.6 billion into Paytm over the years. But before Thursday's sale, it was worth only about $900 million, Reuters reported.
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The shares of Paytm have dropped by over 60 per cent since its Initial Public Offering (IPO) a year ago.
SoftBank's flagship Vision Fund sold a range of assets in the April-June quarter, including Uber Technologies and property platforms Opendoor Technologies and KE Holdings, which operates China's Beike, for a net gain of $5.6 billion.
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