Why Paytm fired over 1,000 employees? Know the key reasons

Vijay Shekhar Sharma-led fintech giant Paytm, the subsidiary of One 97 Communications, has undertaken a significant reduction in its workforce.

Over 1,000 employees across various departments have reportedly been laid off, impacting around 10% of the company's total workforce.

The layoffs have occurred over the past few months, affecting areas such as payments, lending, operations, and sales.

The reason behind the layoffs

These layoffs is rooted in performance-related concerns and the company's goal to improve profitability.

The layoffs coincide with Paytm's withdrawal from small-ticket consumer lending and "buy now pay later" segments, following regulatory restrictions by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). Despite a 32% growth in consolidated revenue, Paytm recorded a net loss in the recent fiscal quarter.

To mitigate the impact of these layoffs, Paytm said it is incorporating AI-led automation, particularly in roles affected by the layoffs.

“We are transforming our operations with AI-powered automation to drive efficiency, eliminating repetitive tasks and roles to drive efficiency across growth and costs, resulting in a slight reduction in our workforce in operations and marketing,” said a company spokesperson.

The company believes it will be able to save 10-15% in employee costs as AI has delivered more than we expected it to.