Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Financial Technology Major led by Vijay Shekhar Sharma Pay would have appointed Sidharth Shakdher as commercial director, according to several media.
The move follows his recent departure from Ola Mobility, where he served as Chief Business Officer (CBO).
In his new role at Paytm, Shakdher will work closely with founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma, focusing primarily on the growth and profitability of the company.
Sidharth Shakdher’s role at Paytm
As head of business, Shakdher is expected to lead Paytm’s marketing strategies and business operations.
His responsibilities will include scaling Paytm’s business growth, improving revenue streams and aligning with the company’s broader strategic objectives, including profitability.
His appointment comes at a crucial time when Paytm is actively focusing on profitability and expanding its market presence.
Previous mandate at Ola
Before joining Paytm, Shakdher spent nine months at Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola, where he played a pivotal role as chief commercial officer.
During his time there, he successfully steered the mobility business toward profitability and launched several new initiatives, such as a consumer lending division, the ONDC food delivery service, and the ONDC program loyalty Ola.
He also oversaw the company’s marketing, category operations and international expansion efforts.
Experience at Disney+ Hotstar and Amazon
Shakdher’s diverse experience extends beyond Ola. He previously worked as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Disney+ Hotstar, where he led marketing efforts and contributed to the platform’s international expansion.
His work there contributed significantly to the platform’s direct-to-consumer (D2C) growth strategy. Additionally, Shakdher has experience at Amazon, where he managed marketing and growth for the US third-party marketplace.
He has also held senior management positions at companies including Samsung, Canon, HP and Xerox.
Financial performance of Paytm
The approval came shortly after Paytm’s parent company, One97 Communications, reported consolidated profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 930 crore for the quarter ending September 2024.
However, the profit is largely attributed to a one-off gain from the sale of its entertainment ticketing business to Deepinder Goyal-led Zomato. Apart from this one-off transaction, Paytm remains a loss-making entity in the public markets.
Paytm’s revenue for the quarter fell 34 per cent YoY (y-o-y) to Rs 1,659 crore, compared to Rs 2,519 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.