Paytm appoints DS Rathore as CTO, outgoing executive named 'AI Fellow'

One97 Communications (OCL), the company that operates brand Paytm, appointed former Paytm Payments Bank executive Deependra Singh Rathore as new chief technology officer (CTO) - payments, and senior management personnel (SMP) at the firm. 

Previously, Rathore had served as senior vice-president at Paytm Payments Bank, OCL’s associate firm which faced the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) action in January. 

The Noida-based company’s outgoing CTO Manmeet Singh Dhody has been ‘transitioned’ to a new role as AI (artificial intelligence) fellow of the fintech major.

He will be responsible for driving projects related to AI innovation in business. 

“We are excited to see Rathore step into the role of CTO, and build for financial services in the AI age. We also welcome Dhody as an AI Fellow, helping accelerate our vision of integrating AI-driven processes across our business operations,” a Paytm spokesperson said. 

The latest appointment comes as the company looks to rejig its top brass. 

Paytm Payment Bank’s former managing director (MD) and chief executive officer (CEO) Surinder Chawla had resigned on account of personal reasons in April. Former IDBI Bank executive Arun Kumar Bansal was appointed MD and CEO of the payments bank in July. 

Bhavesh Gupta, president and chief operating officer (COO) of Paytm, resigned from the company in May. Similarly, chief executive at Paytm Money, Varun Sridhar, stepped down from his position in May also. 

Sridhar has transitioned to the role of CEO at Paytm Services, a subsidiary responsible for distributing mutual funds and other wealth management products.

Rakesh Singh was appointed CEO of Paytm Money.

Other exits include the resignation of Sumit Mathur, the company’s chief marketing officer (CMO), who quit in April after a year-long stint.