It has been almost two months since the poor listing of Paytm. However, Mukul Arora, one of the company’s early investors, still has faith in the digital payments startup and says he has no doubt that Paytm will go on to become ‘a very valuable company’. ‘It’s about to happen. This statement by an early investor comes at a time when many other investors are losing their enthusiasm about Paytm.
Mukul Arora is the co-managing partner of venture firm Elevation Capital. Mukul still believes that Paytm Founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma is the right person to lead the company. However, at the same time, some other investors are questioning the company’s business model and not considering it as attractive amid the rapid growth of rival companies.
Mukul in a conversation with Moneycontrol said, “I have met founders of many companies in the last 10-11 years and I can tell you that Vijay Shekhar Sharma is the most visionary founder India has ever seen. I know that I am I am making a very bold statement, but I have no doubts about it.”
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Paytm was established in the year 2000 as a value added service for telecom companies. The company worked on mobile payments for nearly a decade and expanded into mobile wallets and is now on the way to become a full-fledged financial services firm.
Mukul said, “This person (Vijay Shekhar Sharma) knew Marc Andreessen (an American entrepreneur) only in 2008. He also knew the progress in tech in America. I heard this man interview in 2008. And since then I have been influenced by him. He was talking about today’s era as a tech founder. Hardly anyone would have imagined that he would achieve so many achievements in the future.”
He said, “Their understanding of where the world is headed, where the big changes are taking place, what consumers want and what they need to do as a founder and company – I don’t think that matters. No other founder even comes close to him. Also I don’t think there is any company in the country that has gone through such a transformational journey. So I have no doubt that Paytm will be a huge success in the long run. It’s going to be a valuable company.”
Elevation Capital, formerly known as SAIF Partners, was the first investor in Paytm. Elevation Capital held 18.6% stake in the firm at the time of Paytm’s listing.
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