Berkshire Hathaway invests in Paytm

Todd Combs joins Paytm’s board of directors

Indian digital financial services firm, Paytm, today announced that Warren Buffet owned Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRKB), a Corporation headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, United States, has invested an undisclosed amount in the company.

This is Warren Buffet’s first investment in an Indian company. The investment is also an aberration to Buffet’s usual disinclination to invest in internet firms. Berkshire Hathaway is reported to have picked up a 3–4 percent stake in One97 Communications Limited, that owns the brand Paytm, for more than Rs 25 billion.

Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma with Berkshire Hathaway’s investment manager Todd Combs | Source : Paytm.

Berkshire joins Ant Financial, SoftBank, Alibaba and SAIF Partners as key shareholders in Paytm. Todd Combs, investment manager at Berkshire Hathaway, has joined the board of directors of Paytm, that also includes Mrs. Pallavi Shroff and Mr. Mark Schwartz as independent directors.

“We feel both excited and humbled by this endorsement. Berkshire’s experience in financial services, and long-term investment horizon, is going to be a huge advantage in Paytm’s journey of bringing 500 million Indians to the mainstream economy through financial inclusion It is my honour to welcome Todd to our board, where he will bring his wealth of experience to guide our management team,” said Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Paytm Founder & CEO. Sharma founded One97 in the year 2000, as a mobile payments and recharge business. Now, with a host of payment solutions in its kitty, it is reported to have reached $ 4 billion in monthly gross transaction value.

“I have been impressed by Paytm and am excited about being a part of its growth story, as it looks to transform payments and financial services in India,” said Todd Combs, Investment Manager, Berkshire Hathaway.

This round puts Paytm’s valuation at around $12 billion. Paytm had reported a total revenue of Rs 8.286 billion and net losses of Rs 12.6 billion in the year ended 31 March 2017.