Vijay shekhar sharma – Founder and CEO of Paytm

Vijay shekhar sharma – Founder and CEO of Paytm 

Vijay Shekhar Sharma is a billionaire, business tycoon, and entrepreneur from India. He is the chairman, MD, and CEO of One97 Communications, as well as the Founder and CEO of the company’s consumer brand Paytm, a digital wallet and e-commerce platform. 

Early life 

Vijay Shekhar Sharma was born on July 8, 1978, in Aligarh, Uttar Pradesh, India. Sharma grew up in a small town called Harduaganj in Uttar Pradesh. His mother was a housewife, and his father was a school teacher. Sharma was an intelligent student and excelled in academics. From a young age, he was interested in technology and entrepreneurship.  

He completed his schooling from a local government school and went on to study engineering at Delhi College of Engineering.  

During his college years, Sharma developed an interest in entrepreneurship and started a website called indiasite.net. The website provided information on Indian websites and was an instant hit. However, due to lack of funds, Sharma had to shut down the website. 

Career

After completing his engineering degree, Sharma worked for various companies, including Intersolutions, an Indian startup that provided internet services. In 2000, he started his own venture, Xs! Corp, which provided content management systems and mobile content to companies. Despite initial success, Xs! Corp struggled to make a profit and eventually shut down. He later sold the company to a Singapore-based firm.   

Sharma then founded One97 Communications in 2000, which initially provided value-added services for mobile phones but later pivoted to focus on mobile payments and e-commerce.  

  In 2010, One97 launched Paytm, a digital wallet that allowed users to make online payments, pay bills, and recharge their mobile phones. The platform quickly became popular and grew to become one of the largest digital payment platforms in India. Today, Paytm offers a wide range of services, including digital payments, e-commerce, and financial services.  

Sharma’s success with Paytm has made him one of the most prominent entrepreneurs in India. Forbes magazine named him the youngest Indian billionaire in 2017, with a net worth of $1.3 billion. 

Aside from his work with Paytm, Sharma is also a prolific angel investor and has invested in several Indian startups. In addition, he has been a vocal proponent of digital banking and payment participation in India, and he has received numerous honours and awards for his contributions to the Indian startup ecosystem. 

Philanthropist 

In 2015, he founded the Vijay Shekhar Sharma Foundation, a non-profit organization that focuses on providing scholarships to underprivileged children in India. The Vijay Shekhar Sharma Foundation has also launched several other initiatives, including the Paytm Scholarship Program, which provides financial assistance to students pursuing higher education in India. The foundation has also partnered with various organizations to support causes such as healthcare, disaster relief, and women’s empowerment. 

In addition to his work with the foundation, Sharma has also made personal donations to various causes over the years. For instance, in 2021, he donated Rs. 5 crore (approximately $700,000) to the PM-CARES Fund, a government-run initiative in India that provides support to those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Vijay Shekhar Sharma’s Path to Success 

Sharma has always been focused on innovation, and this has been evident in his career. For instance, he pivoted One97 Communications from a mobile value-added services company to a digital payments company, which led to the creation of Paytm, India’s leading digital payments and financial services company. 

 Sharma has demonstrated the ability to anticipate trends and market opportunities. He recognized the potential of the digital payments market in India early on and positioned Paytm to take advantage of this trend, which has been a major driver of his success.  

Under Sharma’s leadership, Paytm has become one of India’s most valuable startups, with a valuation of over Rs 392 crore as of feburary 2023. Sharma himself is estimated to have a net worth of over $2 billion. 

Sharma’s entrepreneurial journey and success have earned him numerous accolades over the years. In 2016, he was named one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People in the World,” and in 2017, he was awarded the Entrepreneur of the Year award at the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence. 

Networth 

As of February 2023, Vijay Shekhar Sharma had an estimated total net worth of approximately $2.4 billion. 

Interesting Facts about Vijay Shekhar Sharma 

• Sharma has also been vocal about his support for the startup ecosystem in India and has called for more government support for startups.  
• Sharma aspires to form a band that sings in Sanskrit. 
• Paytm is an acronym for “pay through mobile.”  
• He is a big fan of cricket and is often seen attending matches and supporting the Indian cricket team.  
• He is an influence to many ambitious young entrepreneurs in India and is given credit with revolutionizing the country’s digital payments landscape. 

ACHIEVEMENTS AND AWARDS 

• He received the “Digital Entrepreneur of the Year” award at the IAMAI India Digital Awards in 2014. 
• He was named one of Fortune India’s “40 Under 40” in 2015.  
• He earned a spot on Time magazine’s 2016 list of the “100 Most Important Persons in the World.” 
• He received the Entrepreneurial Achievement Award at the ET Awards for Corporate Excellence in 2016.  
• He was featured in Business Today’s list of India’s Most Powerful CEOs in 2016 and 2017.  
• He received the Entrepreneur of the Year award at the Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence in 2017. 
• He received the Impact Person of the Year award at the IMPACT Digital Power 100 awards in 2018. 
• He was featured on Forbes’ list of the World’s Billionaires in 2021, with a net worth of $2.4 billion. 
• At the Rural and Urban Development Conference and Awards in 2022, he received the “Best Serial Entrepreneur” Award.