Paytm has appointed Bhavesh Gupta, a key leader in its lending sector, as President and Chief Operating Officer (COO) in order to boost its lending operations in the face of increasing competition in the digital lending space.

According to a stock exchange filing by One 97 Communications Limited, which owns the fintech, Gupta will now be responsible for leading verticals of lending, insurance, payments-online and offline, consumer payments, and driving key initiatives such as user growth, operations risk, fraud risk, and compliance. Gupta will continue to report to Paytm's managing director and CEO, Vijay Shekhar Sharma.

Prior to joining the fintech unicorn in 2020, Gupta was the CEO of  Clix Capital (formerly known as GE Capital) and has been in the industry for more than 25 years, Paytm said in the filing. Gupta has also previously headed  SME (small and medium enterprises) and business banking at IDFC Bank and was an executive at ICICI Bank, one of the biggest private banks in India. He is a graduate of Delhi University and has completed his MBA from the Institute of Management Studies, Indore.

Gupta's promotion to assume greater responsibilities, particularly in the lending operations, aligns with Paytm's aggressive expansion plans for its digital lending business, as more companies join the frenzy.

Paytm's biggest rival, Walmart-backed PhonePe, has started digital lending pilots and the company might soon apply for an NBFC (non-banking financial company) license, its founder and CEO told in an interview.

Apart from PhonePe, many fintech companies including Cred, Jar, and KreditBee among others have been looking to double down on digital lending as India largely continues to be a credit-starved country. These companies have also raised large sums from investors in the recent past, notwithstanding the funding winter. In fact, lending-focused companies have dominated the overall funding this year.

Paytm, one of India's largest fintech companies, heavily relies on its lending business. The fintech's credit distribution business, in partnership with multiple lenders, grew to 1.2 crore (up 82 percent YoY) loans while the total value of loans amounted to Rs 12,554 crore, registering a growth of 253 percent YoY, in the fourth quarter, report stated last week. As of March 2023, 95 lakh borrowers have taken a loan through the platform. For FY23, the total number of loans disbursed grew 163 percent YoY to 4 crore loans amounting to Rs 35,378 crore, surging 357 percent YoY.