Paytm Q3: Marketing services rev touches Rs 267 cr

Fintech major One97 Communications, which owns the Paytm brand, on Monday released its financial results for the third quarter of FY 2025, showcasing consistent performance in its Marketing Services business.

The segment, which includes offerings such as advertising, travel ticketing, credit card distribution, and deals & gift vouchers, reported revenue of Rs 267 crore, as against Rs 268 crore in Q2 FY 2025, even as the entertainment ticketing business was sold during the previous quarter.

The company says it continues to focus on enabling merchants to drive more commerce activities through its Marketing Services offerings and views its growing monthly transacting user (MTU) base as a critical driver for expanding its Marketing Services revenue in the coming quarters. MTU averaged 7.0 Cr, slightly lower than 7.1 Cr in the previous quarter.

The firm has reported a narrowing of consolidated loss to Rs 208 crore in the third quarter ended December 31, 2024. The company had posted a loss of Rs 222 crore in the same period a year ago, the company said.

Revenue from operations of Paytm declined by 35.8 per cent to Rs 1,827.8 crore during the reported quarter, from Rs 2,850 crore in the December 2024 quarter. Revenue was, however, up 10 per cent on a quarter-onquarter, the company added. India’s banking regulator imposed stringent restrictions on Paytm’s banking affiliate in early 2024, citing longstanding concerns over unregulated data flows between the unit and the broader fintech operations. This regulatory action significantly disrupted Paytm’s business, prompting founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma to strengthen collaborations with other Indian lenders as part of a strategic recovery plan.

As part of cost-cutting measures, Sharma divested Paytm’s movie and events ticketing business to Zomato Ltd. The company is now awaiting approval from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as a payments aggregator, a move that would enable online retailers and merchants on its platform to seamlessly accept digital payments from customers.

A key highlight of the quarter was the growth in gross merchandise value (GMV) for ticketing, deals, and gift vouchers, which reached ?2,281 crore. This marks a quarter-on-quarter increase after adjusting for the exclusion of the entertainment ticketing GMV in Q2 FY 2025.

Paytm reduced its indirect expenses to Rs 1,000 crore, a 7% QoQ and 23% YoY decline. Marketing costs dropped 17% QoQ to Rs 104 crore, while employee costs fell 6% QoQ and 29% YoY to Rs 575 crore, reflecting improved operational efficiency.

The company noted that credit card distribution is scaling at a slower pace as issuers are currently taking a cautious stance, which is evident in slower growth for the industry. There are 13.9 Lakh activated credit cards as of December 2024, compared to 10.1 Lakh last year.