The beleaguered Paytm Payments Bank is facing yet another setback as its managing director and CEO, Surinder Chawla, has resigned from the company. This comes amidst regulatory action from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) against the payments bank.
Chawla tendered his resignation on April 8, citing personal reasons and a desire to explore better career prospects. He will be relieved from his duties at Paytm Payments Bank on June 26, unless changed by mutual consent, according to a regulatory filing by One97 Communications, the brand owner of Paytm.
Chawla had joined PPBL in January last year after the payments bank received approval from the RBI. However, the central bank has recently taken strict action against PPBL, directing it to stop accepting deposits or top-ups in customer accounts, wallets, FASTags, and other instruments.
In response to the regulatory actions, promoter Vijay Shekhar Sharma stepped down as part-time non-executive Chairman of Paytm Payments Bank last month, and the board of the bank has been reconstituted with new members.
Despite these challenges, Paytm remains committed to enhancing its services and has recently been granted approval by the National Payments Corporation of India to participate in UPI as a Third-Party Application Provider. Axis Bank, HDFC Bank, State Bank of India, and YES Bank will act as Payment System Provider banks to Paytm.
As the company navigates through these regulatory hurdles, it continues to collaborate with banking partners to improve its merchant acquiring and UPI services.