Walmart-backed digital payments firm PhonePe on Tuesday received regulatory approval from market watchdog SEBI for its initial public offering. The clearance marks a key milestone for one of India’s most anticipated fintech listings.The approval follows PhonePe’s confidential filing for an IPO in September, according to Reuters. The company is now expected to file its Updated Draft Red Herring Prospectus (UDRHP) shortly, formally setting the process in motion.The proposed IPO will be entirely an Offer For Sale (OFS) by existing shareholders, with no fresh issue of shares. As a result, the company will not raise any new primary capital through the public offering, news agency PTI reported. PhonePe currently dominates India’s digital payments landscape, holding over 45 per cent of the market share in Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions. In December 2025 alone, the platform processed 9.8 billion transactions, as per data from the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).On the financial front, PhonePe reported revenue of Rs 7,115 crore in FY24-25, a 40 per cent increase year-on-year. The company also turned free cash flow positive, with an operating cash flow of Rs 1,202 crore during the year. Its adjusted profit after tax, excluding ESOP-related costs, more than tripled to Rs 630 crore.Industry observers said that PhonePe’s public listing could serve as a key benchmark for India’s fast-growing digital payments and fintech sector, potentially paving the way for other fintech unicorns planning to tap the public markets.
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