American private equity firm General Atlantic has invested $600 million in PhonePe, increasing its stake to 9%. This investment was made to cover employees' ESOP tax liabilities. The company is soon preparing for a mega IPO of approximately ₹12,000 crore, which will not involve the issuance of any new shares.
PhonePe IPO: Fintech company PhonePe has received a new investment of $600 million from General Atlantic, increasing the investor's stake from 4.4% to 9%. This deal will help cover employees' ESOP tax liabilities. The company submitted its confidential draft to SEBI in September 2025 and is preparing for a mega IPO of ₹12,000 crore through an Offer For Sale (OFS) by the end of the year. In this offer, Walmart, Tiger Global, and Microsoft may sell their stakes.
Relief for Employees Before IPO
This investment brings relief to PhonePe's employees. This amount will help the company's employees pay off tax liabilities incurred after exercising their Employee Stock Options (ESOPs). According to sources, no founder or existing investor has sold their shares under this deal. This means the investment is directly going into the company as new capital.
Total Investment of $1.15 Billion So Far
General Atlantic has been consistently investing in PhonePe since 2023. To date, the firm has invested a total of $1.15 billion. PhonePe is one of the country's largest digital payments companies and has now ventured into new financial services such as insurance, loans, and wealth management. Additionally, the company is also working on its new consumer tech platforms, Pincode and Indus Appstore.
Preparation for ₹12,000 Crore IPO
PhonePe is preparing to enter the stock market soon. The company filed a confidential draft with SEBI in September 2025. According to reports, the upcoming mega IPO will include an Offer For Sale of approximately ₹12,000 crore, or $1.35 billion. No new shares will be issued in this IPO. Existing investors will sell some of their stakes under this. The company may submit an updated draft to SEBI by the end of this year.
PhonePe has adopted a confidential route for its IPO. The advantage of this is that the company can keep sensitive business-related information confidential. In this process, the company can determine its IPO strategy according to market conditions and withdraw the draft if necessary. If the company had filed a standard DRHP, all information would have been available as a public document.
Who Will Sell Shares
Under the Offer For Sale in the IPO, Walmart, Tiger Global, and Microsoft are preparing to sell some of their shares. It is likely that these three combined will offer approximately a 10 percent stake. Walmart holds the largest stake in PhonePe. Additionally, major investors like General Atlantic, Ribbit Capital, TVS Capital, Tencent, and Qatar Investment Authority also hold stakes in the company.
PhonePe's Strong Financial Position
PhonePe was launched in August 2016. In fiscal year 2025, the company's revenue grew by 40 percent to ₹7,115 crore. Adjusted EBITDA, which is earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, was recorded at ₹1,477 crore, more than double compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, adjusted net profit surged by 220 percent to ₹630 crore.
