Sonia Dhawan

Under her stewardship, One 97 Communications Limited (OCL), which owns the brand Paytm — India’s leading payments and financial services company and the pioneer of QR and mobile payments — went public in November 2021. It was subsequently listed on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). She played a pivotal role in the launch of Paytm Payments Bank Limited (PPBL) in November 2017, introducing a seamless banking system to the country. Her role has been instrumental, from the public listing of OCL (Paytm) to guiding it to break-even and then profits. She remains dedicated to building Paytm into a large, profitable company and creating long-term shareholder value. The company achieved the milestone of EBITDA before ESOP cost profitability in the December 2022 quarter. Her adeptness in media strategies and timely thinking enabled Paytm to demonstrate to the media and the public at large that Google was allegedly attempting to strongarm Indian technology companies and the start-up ecosystem. Their media campaigns persuaded both the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and CCI to act and offer support to the Indian technology ecosystem.