Paytm Insider announces elevation of Varun Khare to position of COO

Paytm Insider, the online entertainment ticketing arm of the fintech major, on Tuesday announced the elevation of Varun Khare to the position of chief operating officer (COO).

Prior to this, Khare was the business head of live entertainment (intellectual properties and partnerships) at the company.

Moving forward, he will lead the company's operational strategies and be in charge of driving growth and innovation across the business.

Paytm Insider claims to have recorded over 100 per cent growth in gross merchandise value (GMV) for the past two years under Khare's leadership as business head. The Mumbai-based company said revenues have quadrupled during the same period.

“With a clear understanding of the brand's vision and the need to build the event infrastructure in India, Varun was instrumental in making significant inroads into Tier-II and Tier-III markets by collaborating with artists, organisers, and promoters to enhance live event experiences,” the company said in a release.

Before joining Paytm Insider, Khare worked with Fountainhead MKTG, a marketing agency, and Oranjuice Entertainment.

“Working with a team of around 150 exceptionally talented individuals and earning their respect has been one of the most gratifying and significant achievements of my career. We have successfully expanded to over 170 cities, reaching a diverse customer base across genres, making my journey both challenging and rewarding,” Khare said.

In 2017, Paytm acquired a majority stake in the online ticket booking platform Insider.in as it looked to take on the country’s largest events and movie ticket booking service, BookMyShow.

The fintech firm had said that the partnership would enable its registered customers to discover events and book them instantly.

Paytm Insider claims to have sold over 27.5 million tickets and hosted visitors at over 150,000 events to date.