No ED probe against CEO, company: Paytm

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One97 Communications, owner of Paytm brand, said the company nor its founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma  were being investigated by the Enforecement Directorate for money laundering. “Neither the Company nor its founder and CEO are being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate regarding inter alia money laundering. In the past, certain merchants/users on our platforms have been subject to enquiries and on those occasions, we have always cooperated with the authorities,” Paytm said in a regulatory filing.

The ED had visited premises of the company and some other fintech firms  in September 2022 for money laundering investigations against some of the merchants that were using their platforms.

The company said it has cooperated with the agencies during any investigations by the authorities on any set of merchants or users in the past.

“We would like to set the record straight and deny any involvement in anti-money laundering activities. We have and continue to abide by Indian laws and take regulatory orders with utmost seriousness,” the filing said.

The Reserve Bank of India had on January 31, barred the Paytm Payments Bank Ltd from accepting any further deposits or conducting credit transactions or carrying out top-ups on any customers accounts, prepaid instruments, wallets, cards for paying road tolls after February 29.

Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL) is an associate of One97 Communications Limited (OCL), which holds 49 per cent of the paid-up share capital (directly and through its subsidiary) of PPBL. Sharma has a 51 per cent stake in the bank. After the RBI order, the stock has dropped almost 40%, hitting lower circuit on two consecutive days.

On the other hand, Morgan Stanley bought the company’s shares worth Rs 244 crore omn Friday.