PE-VC investment in mobile payment firms at 6-yr high; Paytm leads with $1.4 bn

Modi govt's demonetisation drive has brought PE-VC funds back into the landscape

Private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) investments in the mobile payment sector touched a six-year peak during the first five months of 2017, with Paytm leading the pack. The surge in investments comes against the backdrop of increasing digital transactions in the country after the government's demonetisation drive of November last year.

From January to June this year, the sector attracted $1.418 billion in four deals as compared to $15 million in three deals during the previous year, mainly due to SoftBank Corp's investment in Paytm's parent company, One97 Communications.

As Paytm leverages the government's efforts to promote cashless