Even as the matter has already been resolved months ago by fintech giant Paytm’s shareholders, a proxy advisory firm IiAS has raised concerns regarding the grant of ESOPs to Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Chairman, MD and CEO of Paytm. The firm’s latest report is not an advisory to shareholders, so one is unsure about the context of the report. While the report came as a surprise, Indian fintech giant Paytm has said that it has followed all provisions of applicable law and complied with due process for the grant of ESOPs, including approval by the shareholders and even earlier, at the time of clearance for the IPO.
One97 Communications Limited (OCL) in an earlier exchange filing, had explicitly noted that Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s ESOPs are milestone linked. In response to our queries, Paytm reiterated that Sharma’s reappointment and remuneration had been duly approved via a company law process that received a resounding vote of confidence from shareholders in August, 2022. The resolution for Mr. Sharma’s remuneration received 94.48% votes in favour. His remuneration is fixed for the next three years without any annual increment, unlike the policy/practice applicable to all other employees of the company as well as in other companies.
