One97 Communication, the parent company of Paytm, India’s fastest growing digital wallet, posted a total revenue of $ 126 million for the fiscal year 2016 – 2017. The net worth of the company also scaled new heights to reach Rs. 2,376.6 crores.
After recording a loss of Rs. 13.63 crores in the financial year 2015 – 2016, with a total revenue of Rs. 7.34 crores, the company gained more customers in November last year following Demonetization. Paytm became the de facto digital wallet for thousands of traders and users.
Founded by Vijay Shekhar Sharma in 2010, Paytm was one of the first digital wallets to be launched in India. In August 2016, the company also incorporated Paytm Payments Bank and formally launched its operations in May 2017. In an attempt to capture the lucrative ecommerce market in India, One97 Communications also launched the consumer shopping app Paytm Mall in February this year.
Backed by China’s largest ecommerce site Alibaba and Japanese major SoftBank, the company claims to have over 218 million customers in India and a few other parts of the world. In a Facebook post, Vijay Shekhar Sharma added, the company would try to increase their customer count to 50 crores by the end of 2020.
The digital payments company earns most of its revenue through its mobile wallet and ecommerce business. During the recent festive season sale, Paytm Mall also chalked out an aggressive budget of Rs. 1,000 crores, including Rs. 501 crores cashback offers. Paytm, Snapdeal and ShopClues, together, managed to capture close to 16% of the market share. The company also witnessed a 65% rise in offline payments resulting in transactions worth $ 1.6 billion. Vijay Shekhar Sharma was also featured in the 6th “Hurun India Rich List 2017,” along with Flipkart founders Binny Bansal and Sachin Bansal. Sources claim, the founder of Paytm, the biggest digital wallet, received a salary of Rs. 3.4 crores last year.
Watch the inspiring journey of Vijay Shekhar Sharma from Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh to becoming one of the most influential entrepreneurs of this generation.
Gramik, a Lucknow-based agritech startup, has secured INR 17 crore in a bridge funding round ahead of its upcoming INR 56 crore Series A raise.
The funding round included investments via Optionally Convertible Debentures (OCDs) and Compulsorily Convertible Debentures (CCDs).
Key investors include Sammaan Global Ventures, Money Creeper Investment, and prominent angels such as Balram Yadav (MD & CEO, Godrej Agrovet), Gev Aryaton, Irfan Alam, Nikhil Bhagat, and Salvia Siddiqui.
Gramik’s Unique Peer Commerce Model
Founded in 2021 by Raj Yadav, Gramik empowers over 120 million small and marginal farmers in India through a technology-driven rural commerce platform.
The startup operates a dual-channel distribution network using Village-Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) and rural retailers to deliver high-quality agri-inputs to remote areas.
Gramik’s full-stack platform offers demand aggregation, logistics, embedded credit, and agronomy services, ensuring last-mile delivery and support for farmers.
Expansion Plans and Future Growth
Gramik currently operates in 12 districts, with 1,200+ active VLEs and 250+ rural retail partners, and plans to expand to 3,000 VLEs and reach 1 million+ farmers across Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Jammu.
The new funds will be used to expand Gramik’s private-label products, enhance agronomy-led farmer engagement, and scale operations in key states.
With a strong focus on supply chain efficiency, technology, and farmer advisory services, Gramik aims to become a leader in India’s $50 billion agri-input and rural commerce market.
Backed by previous seed funding of over INR 25 crore, Gramik is set to drive innovation and inclusive growth for rural communities.
Reliance Jio Platforms, the digital and telecom powerhouse led by Mukesh Ambani, has decided to postpone its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO), shelving plans for a 2025 listing. The IPO, which analysts valued at over $100 billion and expected to be India’s largest-ever stock market debut, will not take place this year. The company has yet to appoint bankers for the process, signaling that preparations for the public offering have not started in earnest.
According to sources close to the matter, Jio Platforms wants to give its business more time to grow before going public. The company is focusing on boosting revenues, expanding its telecom subscriber base, and scaling up its digital services—including apps, connected devices, and AI solutions—so it can achieve a higher valuation when the IPO eventually happens. Nearly 80% of Jio Platforms’ $17.6 billion annual revenue currently comes from its telecom business, Reliance Jio Infocomm, but the company is investing heavily in new digital ventures and partnerships, such as its collaboration with Nvidia on AI infrastructure.
The news of the delay impacted the market, with shares of parent company Reliance Industries falling by up to 1.8% following the announcement. Despite a strong IPO environment in India, Jio’s move is seen as a strategic decision to ensure stronger business fundamentals and a higher valuation before entering the public markets. Major investors, including Google and Meta, are said to support the decision, viewing it as a step toward long-term value creation.
Flick TV, India’s first mobile-focused OTT platform dedicated to micro-dramas, has secured $2.3 million in seed funding led by Stellaris Venture Partners, with participation from Gemba Capital and Titan Capital. Founded in early 2025 by Kushal Singhal, Pratik Anand, and Sanidhya Mittal, the platform aims to address the growing demand for high-quality, short-form storytelling tailored for mobile consumption. Unlike traditional user-generated short video platforms, Flick TV produces professionally shot, under-five-minute dramas across genres such as romance, thrillers, and slice-of-life—each crafted for vertical viewing to suit India’s rapidly expanding mobile internet audience.
The newly raised capital will be used to scale up content production, with plans to launch over 100 original titles, enhance the platform’s streaming technology, and expand offerings into four regional languages. Flick TV is also investing in generative AI and advanced workflows to streamline scripting and production, aiming to combine creative excellence with operational efficiency. The founders bring deep expertise from previous roles at ShareChat, EloElo, Meesho, and Pocket FM, positioning the company to bridge the gap between creator agility and cinematic storytelling in India’s nascent micro-drama ecosystem.
Industry observers see Flick TV as a frontrunner in India’s next entertainment wave, which is expected to be mobile-native, emotionally engaging, and built for short attention spans. With the micro-drama market projected to reach $5 billion in India over the next five years—mirroring the $7 billion success in China—Flick TV is poised to set new standards for premium, binge-worthy short-form content and redefine streaming for the modern Indian viewer.