Paytm is a step closer to bringing back its wallet. The Reserve Bank of India has given in-principle approval to Paytm Payments Services, a wholly owned subsidiary of One 97 Communications, to set up and operate a payment system for issuing prepaid payment instruments, the category that includes digital wallets.
The company disclosed the approval in a stock exchange filing on Friday, 13 November. Shares of One 97 Communications rose as much as 1.8 percent to Rs 1,960 in early trade, a record high, before closing 0.81 percent higher at Rs 1,940.60. The stock has gained about 50 percent so far this year.
01. Approval is preliminary, not a licence yet
The approval does not mean Paytm can start issuing wallets straight away. The Reserve Bank has given Paytm Payments Services six months to complete a system audit, including a cybersecurity audit, and submit the report. If it misses that deadline, the in-principle authorisation will lapse automatically.
Only after the audit is accepted will the RBI issue a final Certificate of Authorisation. Paytm can offer prepaid instruments such as wallets to customers only after that final approval, the company said in its filing.
02. Two years after the wallet business stopped
Paytm’s wallet business has been stuck since 2024, when the RBI barred Paytm Payments Bank from accepting fresh deposits and wallet top-ups over persistent regulatory non-compliance and supervisory concerns. Earlier this year, the RBI cancelled the banking licence issued to Paytm Payments Bank.
The new approval gives the group a different route back. Paytm Payments Services is a separate regulated entity, and it already holds a payment aggregator licence from the RBI, granted on 26 November 2025, which lets it process online payments for merchants.
03. What it means for Paytm
A wallet licence would let Paytm rebuild a product that was once central to its brand, this time through a regulated subsidiary. The market reaction suggests investors see the approval as a turning point: the stock crossed Rs 1,900 for the first time since its 2021 listing on Thursday, when it rose 7.31 percent to close at Rs 1,925, and pushed on to a new high on Friday.
The company’s market capitalisation stood at about Rs 1.25 lakh crore at Friday’s close. The next step is the audit, which will decide whether the preliminary nod becomes a full licence.
