Employee Dues at PayMate Linked to Stalled DigiAsia Deal and Funding Crunch

The B2B payments startup PayMate India Ltd, which has backing from Visa Inc. and Lightbox Ventures, has been late paying employees their full salary for up to a year. Until a planned transaction with DigiAsia Corp closes and new capital flows in, the company stated it cannot do so. A media source was informed by the Mumbai-based company that all outstanding employee dues and settlements are scheduled to be settled by 30 June.

The company had previously sought a public listing in India in the amount of INR 1,500 crore. After the deal with DigiAsia Corp. closes and a capital round follows, all of these outstanding payments will be paid off. A $400 million deal with a $25 million cash component was announced in 2024, but it has since been revised. There is no cash involved in the DigiAsia deal; it is a stock swap, according to PayMate.

PayMate Going Through Challenging Times

Multiple sources told reporters that PayMate's senior leadership is leaving and overseas operations are shrinking. News outlets have also reported that Sanjit Bose, PayMate India Pvt. Ltd.'s worldwide head of solutions and partnerships, has left the company. Additionally, Kevin Christopher Phalen, an independent director, departed in July, as indicated on his LinkedIn profile.

Rakesh Khanna, CCO, Nanda Harish, SVP and general counsel, and Pooja Chauhan, VP and head of global human resources, were among the senior executives whose departures were revealed in the media in November. Several news outlets have reported that employees have served legal notices on the corporation over overdue salaries and full and final settlements. Current and past employees alike have complained to the media about the company's erratic salary payments, which have persisted for months, and the widespread presence of outstanding dues and settlements. After the company's previous reimbursement deadlines fell through, they have now issued a fresh promise.

PayMate Shutting its Middle East Operations

After a major investor failed to transfer the promised funds for more than nine months, PayMate shut down its West Asian operations and sought to raise $20 million again in November. The business had previously assured workers that their outstanding balances would be paid in full the following month, but once again, payments were postponed. The Reserve Bank of India's crackdown on intermediary-routed card transactions in 2024 put PayMate and several other B2B payment ecosystem peers under financial duress, leading to the prolonged liquidity crunch.

This occurs at a time when modern digital companies are under intense scrutiny from public market investors and late-stage supporters on their governance, profitability, and financial discipline. The financial technology company further stated that it had "right-sized" its India operations to better suit its present operational goals.