PhonePe, Owned by Walmart, Getting Ready for its IPO in India

Nitin Konde, Varun Bhardwaj

25 Feb 2025 — 3 min read

Walmart-Owned PhonePe Prepares for India IPO

With ambitions to list on Indian stock exchanges, fintech business PhonePe said on 20 February that it has started preparing for the start of its initial public offering (IPO). According to a press release from PhonePe, the company, which will mark its tenth anniversary this year, provides cutting-edge financial services and technological solutions to hundreds of millions of users. Having been established in India and being a pioneer in the country's fintech sector, PhonePe has long hoped to go public, the statement further stated. After moving from Singapore to India in December 2022, PhonePe created a distinct corporate structure and made all of its new non-payment companies fully owned subsidiaries.

Why it is the Right Time to Go Public?

The release stated that now is a good time to be ready for a public offering because of PhonePe's robust top-line and bottom-line growth throughout its varied business portfolio, as reported in its FY23-24 annual report. Its revenue surpassed INR 5,000 crore in FY 23–24, increasing 74% year over year and making adjusted PAT positive (PAT less expenses for Employee Stock Options, or ESOP). In contrast to the INR 738 crore loss for FY 22–23, the group recorded an adjusted PAT of INR 197 crore for FY 23–24. Additionally, the standalone payments company reported an adjusted PAT of INR 710 for FY23–24, as opposed to a loss of INR 194 crore for FY22–23. PhonePe is licensed to operate a wide range of operations, including stock broking, insurance broking, prepaid instruments, and payment aggregators.

Investors of PhonePe

The company's 2024 annual report states that prominent investors have contributed INR 18,000 crore to PhonePe. According to PhonePe's annual report, the company's roster of investors includes some of the most recognisable strategic investors, sovereign funds, and private equity investors worldwide, led by Walmart Inc., its largest shareholder. August 2016 saw the release of the PhonePe digital payments app. By January 2025, PhonePe boasted a network of over 4 crore merchants accepting digital payments and over 59 crore lifetime registered users. Additionally, PhonePe handles more than 31 crore transactions every day, with a total payment value (TPV) of more than INR 145 lakh crore annually.

IPO Getting More Popular Among Startup Sector

Due to a robust IPO market and a resurgence of investor interest in tech equities, a number of technology businesses intend to go public in 2025. Lenskart, an eyeglasses startup, has contacted investment banks to present for the mandate for its possible initial public offering (IPO), which may raise $1 billion. Groww, a stock broker, had selected five investment banks for a $1 billion initial public offering.

In the near future, startups like SoftBank-backed OfBusiness, contract maker Zetwek, and financial unicorn Pine Labs hope to raise $1 billion through initial public offerings (IPOs). Up to 25 firms hope to debut on the public market in 2025. This comprises companies that aim for $500 million initial public offerings (IPOs), such as edtech company PhysicsWallah, AI unicorn Fractal, construction materials portal Infra.market, and leader in rapid commerce Zepto.