PhonePe processes 5 billion transactions in a month for the first time in July quarter

PhonePe logged annualised total payments volume of $1.15 trillion in May-July quarter

Walmart-owned fintech unicorn PhonePe processed 5 billion transactions in a month for the first time in the May-July quarter, while logging an annualised total payments volume of $1.15 trillion, a top executive of the American retail major said in an earnings call.

PhonePe was hived off from Walmart-owned Flipkart as a separate company last year as the fintech startup prepares to list in India. Walmart also said that taxation due to this business re-organisation, along with settlement expenses in the US due to an opioid crisis, led to a hit to its earnings per share for the quarter.

Walmart earned $7.89 billion, or $2.92 per share, for the three-month period ended July 31. Adjusted results were $1.84 per share, or 13 cents better than Wall Street had expected, according to a survey of industry analysts by FactSet. It was also up from last year’s quarterly profit of $5.15 billion. Sales rose nearly 6% to $161.63 billion, a shade better than expected.

“In India, Flipkart showed strong GMV and ad sales growth as the core business continues to perform well. The team continues to focus on expanding the ecosystem of products and services like advertising, travel and healthcare and delivering continued contribution profit improvement. Flipkart's consistent performance reinforces our confidence in the value of this business,” said Walmart chief financial officer John D Rainey.

Walmart said on August 17 it expects sales to rise 3 percent and anticipates $1.45 per share to $1.50 per share for the current quarter. For the year, it now projects sales to be up 4 percent to 4.5 percent and shares to be $6.36 per share to $6.46 per share. In the previous quarter, it had projected sales to be up 3.5 percent and anticipated a per share range of $6.10 to $6.20 per share for the year.

Analysts had expected $1.49 per share for the current quarter and $6.30 per share for the year, according to FactSet.

“We had another strong quarter. Around the world, our customers and members are prioritizing value and convenience. They’re shopping with us across channels — in stores, Sam’s Clubs, and they’re driving e-commerce, which was up 24% globally. Food is a strength, but we’re also encouraged by our results in general merchandise versus our expectations when we started the quarter,” said Walmart CEO Doug McMillon.

“Our associates helped deliver increases in transaction counts and units sold, and profit is growing faster than sales. We’re in good shape with inventory, and we like our position for the back half of the year,” he added.

(With inputs from agencies)