Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma draws parallels with Elon Musk after IPO debacle

Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the founder and chief executive officer at Paytm's parent One 97 Communications Ltd, compared his firm with Elon Musk's Tesla, reported Bloomberg on November 22.

Apart from this, Sharma also drew parallels between himself and Musk following Paytm's brutal first-day plunge after its initial public offering.

ALSO READ: Paytm IPO: Let's keep our head low, there's a long way to go: Vijay Shekhar Sharma to employees

The 43-year-old businessman held a four-hour town hall to rally employees who kept a watch as stocks plunge 27 percent on November 18. Encouraging the employee, Sharma asked them to focus on the long-term opportunities for bringing digital payments to the country’s fast-growing internet population.

Drawing parallels with Tesla, Sharma reminded employees that the electric vehicle maker’s stock used to be the among the most-shorted in the world. However, he also said how Tesla took years to become one of the most recognised brands globally.

Sharma has earlier tweeted about his admiration for Musk. Earlier in July 2020, he had praised the Tesla founder when Musk overtook Toyota Motor Corp to become the world’s most valuable automaker.

What a motivating underdog success story!
After so many naysayers and people attempting to pull @elonmusk down, he has proven what is he made of !
Second only to Steve in pulling his company from near bottom to top of industry and loved by users.
एक दिन, अपना टाइम आएगा ! pic.twitter.com/ba1UI9UlGe

— Vijay Shekhar Sharma (@vijayshekhar) July 1, 2020

On November 22 too, Paytm's shares tumbled, down another 17 percent, leaving them about 40 percent below the IPO offering price of Rs 2,150.