Paytm proposes to trim salary of board members, cap annual pay at ₹48 lakh

The move is aligned with the company's efforts towards responsible financial discipline and corporate governance.

The new remuneration framework, which is subject to the approval from shareholders, proposes to cap the annual compensation of each non-executive independent director at ₹48 lakh, with a fixed component of ₹20 lakh.

The variable component will be linked to attendance at the meetings and chairpersonship/membership positions held in the various committees of the board, to ensure good governance.

The revised remuneration structure will be effective from April 1, 2024, if it receives the nod from the shareholders at the annual general meeting (AGM) scheduled next month.

Previously, the annual salaries of non-executive independent directors of Paytm's board, including Ashit Ranjit Lilani, was set at ₹1.65 crore, while that of Gopalasamudram Srinivasaraghavan Sundararajan was set at ₹2.07 crore.

According to the company's exchange filing, the new remuneration structure is based on the benchmarking done by the company, keeping in mind good governance practices and companies in similar sectors or types of business with similar market capitalisation.

Sale of ticketing business

As Paytm shifts its focus to the core business of payments, the company has decided to sell its entertainment ticketing business to food delivery aggregator Zomato.

As part of the agreement, One97 Communications Ltd, the parent entity of Paytm, will sell its "100% stake in its subsidiaries OTPL and WEPL, which operate the TicketNew and Insider platforms, respectively to Zomato", a press release noted.

The transfer will also include around 280 existing employees from the entertainment ticketing business, the release added. The acquisition will be completed within 90 days from the signing of the share purchase and sale agreement.