PhonePe, India’s leading digital payments and financial services platform backed by Walmart and global investors, has cleared the regulatory hurdle needed to launch its Initial Public Offering (IPO) after receiving approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The much-anticipated listing, expected to go live in early to mid 2026, is projected to raise about ₹12,000 crore through an Offer for Sale (OFS) and could value the company close to $15 billion making it the second-largest fintech IPO in the country after Paytm’s.
Author : Aashiya Jain | EQmint | FinTech News
SEBI Approval Opens the Door to Public Markets
PhonePe’s IPO journey gained significant momentum on 20 January 2026 when SEBI granted its nod to the fintech’s draft filing, a major regulatory milestone. Rather than issuing new shares the IPO is likely to be structured as a pure Offer for Sale (OFS) meaning existing shareholders such as Walmart Tiger Global and Microsoft will sell a portion of their holdings unlocking liquidity after years of private investment.
Under this structure PhonePe is expected to offer about ₹12000 crore worth of shares to the public with no fresh capital being raised directly by the company. Depending on market response and final pricing this could translate to a valuation of around $15 billion (roughly ₹135 lakh crore) reinforcing PhonePe’s position as one of India’s most valuable fintech businesses.
A Look Back at PhonePe’s Growth Story
PhonePe’s origins go back to December 2015 when it was founded by Sameer Nigam Rahul Chari and Burzin Engineer out of Flipkart’s ecosystem. Since then the platform has evolved from a mobile payments app to a comprehensive financial services player offering UPI payments digital wallets stock broking insurance distribution and more.
Today it processes billions of transactions each month and commands roughly 45% of India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) market with competitors like Google Pay trailing behind. Over the years PhonePe has raised nearly ₹18000 crore in private capital with its last major funding round valuing the company at about $12 billion in 2023-24.
Walmart for its part holds a majority stake following its acquisition of Flipkart, and by extension PhonePe, providing strong strategic backing for its public debut. Financially the company has shown considerable improvement. For FY25 PhonePe reported operating revenue of over ₹7115 crore up more than 40% year-on-year while narrowing losses compared to previous years. It has also begun generating positive free cash flow a key indicator investors often look for in IPO candidates.
What Investors Can Expect from the IPO
For institutional investors PhonePe’s IPO represents an opportunity to invest in a market leader with a strong user base and diversified fintech offerings. Institutions typically focus on long-term structural growth and are likely to value PhonePe’s dominant position in digital payments expanding services and improving financial metrics. For retail investors the PhonePe IPO could be equally intriguing, but it comes with important considerations.
Unlike many IPOs that create fresh equity and growth capital for the company PhonePe’s OFS means no new funds will flow into the business directly. Instead the IPO provides an exit route for existing investors. This difference may impact the way retail investors think about long-term value versus short-term price movements once the stock starts trading.
Additionally because fintech valuations can be sensitive to broader market sentiment timing and pricing will play critical roles in determining how the retail tranche performs at listing. Historically high-profile IPOs have generated excitement and early trading gains but they also carry volatility and depend heavily on subscription demand at launch.
Where This IPO Stands in India’s Fintech Landscape
If PhonePe achieves its target valuation it will surpass many of its fintech peers and become one of the biggest tech listings in India’s history, second only to Paytm’s IPO in 2021 which had raised ₹18300 crore at a valuation near $20 billion.
The prospects of a $15 billion listing reflect not only PhonePe’s current strength in digital payments but also growing confidence in the broader Indian fintech ecosystem. With regulators showing support and the IPO fever resurging after a lull 2026 may well be remembered as a breakthrough year for technology and financial innovation on India’s stock exchanges.
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Resource Link: MoneyControl
Disclaimer: This article is not an investment advice and is for educational purpose only
