Insurance & Central Asia-focused Analyst, KT Capital Group

Alec Tseung

Insurance & Central Asia-focused Analyst

KT Capital Group

Principal investments and advisory firm that focuses on connecting the CIS countries with East Asia.

Principal investments and advisory firm

Equity Bottom-Up

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://smartkarma.zoom.us/rec/share/greN_IcTNbNIKfXkLUrkLPlmSXvDzuNh6Oad7iFT39LMx6BL5WsQXTLHfLErBwPT.Xt9FLCjm5WkeCCsj" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:131779" rel="noopener">A recent Smartkarma Corporate Webinar | iFAST: Stellar Performance of Singapore's Global Fintech Player</a> introduced one of the few Fintech players in Asia that has been making profits since 2011.</li>
<li>The successful launch of its HK ePension platform can be highly scalable and is expected to be an important growth driver for the company in 2024 and 2025. </li>
<li>IFast Global Bank is expected to break even in Q4 this year and to be an important growth driver for the group's next 3-year plan (2025 and beyond). </li>
</ul>
<p><em>This Insight is part of the Smartkarma Corporate Webinar series, supported by SGX through the Investor Education Fund.</em></p>



A recent Smartkarma Corporate Webinar | iFAST: Stellar Performance of Singapore's Global Fintech Player introduced one of the few Fintech players in Asia that has been making profits since 2011.
The successful launch of its HK ePension platform can be highly scalable and is expected to be an important growth driver for the company in 2024 and 2025. 
IFast Global Bank is expected to break even in Q4 this year and to be an important growth driver for the group's next 3-year plan (2025 and beyond). 

This Insight is part of the Smartkarma Corporate Webinar series, supported by SGX through the Investor Education Fund.

IFast: A Profitable Fintech Player that Deserves More Investor Attention

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements, Aequitas Research

Sumeet Singh

Head of Research, IPOs & Placements

IPOs and Placements coverage across Asia Pacific

Aequitas Research

We cover all listing across the Asia Pacific along with follow-up placements. As of Dec 2020, our team had covered 539 IPOs with a hit rate of 73.5% and 685 placements with a hit rate of 66.8%.

We combine fundamental bottom-up views with our proprietary quantitative framework to provide a holistic coverage across new listings and placements. Our coverage includes pre-IPO notes before the deal is launched, follow-up analysis once the deal is live and post-listing trading analysis as well.

Event-Driven

<ul>
<li>In Aug 2022, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/zomato-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28820:1" rel="noopener">Zomato (ZOMATO IN)</a> completed the acquisition of 91% of Blinkit’s outstanding shares via issuing its own shares. These shares were released from their lockup in Aug 2023.</li>
<li>Leading to a selldown by <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/softbank-group-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:315:1" rel="noopener">Softbank Group (9984 JP)</a> in the same month, followed by another selldown in Oct 2023. Softbank will once again be released from its lockup soon.</li>
<li>In this note, we will talk about the lock-up dynamics and recent updates.</li>
</ul>


In Aug 2022, Zomato (ZOMATO IN) completed the acquisition of 91% of Blinkit’s outstanding shares via issuing its own shares. These shares were released from their lockup in Aug 2023.
Leading to a selldown by Softbank Group (9984 JP) in the same month, followed by another selldown in Oct 2023. Softbank will once again be released from its lockup soon.
In this note, we will talk about the lock-up dynamics and recent updates.


Zomato Lock-Up - Last of the Softbank Selldown

Forensic Analyst, Trudence Capital Advisors

Nitin Mangal

Forensic Analyst

Trudence Capital Advisors

Trudence Capital Advisors Private Limited is a SEBI-registered Research Analyst, holding SEBI registration number INH000015747. Our firm is dedicated to providing independent and unbiased research on Indian mid to large-cap companies. Trudence Capital is known for its counter-consensus views, with a focus on forensic research and on-ground primary investigations. Our research approach is thorough, involving detailed analysis of accounting practices and governance, alongside extensive channel checks.

Independent & Unbiased Research

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pb-fintech-limited-policybazaar" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33470:1" rel="noopener">Policybazaar (POLICYBZ IN)</a> 's narrative on commission caps shifted sharply within a month from largely downplaying regulatory concerns in May to describing them as an “existential threat” in June. </li>
<li>The intervening promoter stake sale adds another layer of scrutiny, raising questions about the alignment between management’s risk assessment, communication, and actions. </li>
<li>The sequence is hard to ignore. The larger issue here is not the regulatory risk, but the transparency.</li>
</ul>



Policybazaar (POLICYBZ IN) 's narrative on commission caps shifted sharply within a month from largely downplaying regulatory concerns in May to describing them as an “existential threat” in June. 
The intervening promoter stake sale adds another layer of scrutiny, raising questions about the alignment between management’s risk assessment, communication, and actions. 
The sequence is hard to ignore. The larger issue here is not the regulatory risk, but the transparency.


Market & Forensics Analyst, Beat the Street

Nimish Maheshwari

Market & Forensics Analyst

Beat the Street

Beat The Street was founded by Nimish Maheshwari and Sudarshan Bhandari, both of whom are Chartered Accountants by Profession, known for their expert analysis in the fields of Business, Sectoral analysis, and Corporate governance.

With a strong social media presence of 45,000+ Subscribers across various platforms, they are considered trusted voices in the industry. Their insights and analysis have been featured in some of India’s most prominent publications, including the Economic Times, Dalal Street Investment Journal, The Morning Context, and The Ken.

Their analysis on Bankrupt & Insolvent companies has been instrumental in saving investors from significant losses. They have a keen eye for identifying red flags and has identified exclusive redflags earlier in Vedanta, Nykaa, Dhani Services, Adani and many more.

Read Business Not Stock Prices

Thematic (Sector/Industry)

<ul>
<li>The 0.4% MDR is not pure fintech revenue. Exemptions, fee-sharing, merchant behaviour and competitive incentives will determine how much reaches profits.</li>
<li>Paytm is the strongest listed beneficiary: Its presence across consumer UPI and merchant acquiring allows it to earn from both sides of eligible transactions.</li>
<li>Pine Labs, MobiKwik benefit differently: Pine Labs gains through merchant acquiring, while MobiKwik’s upside depends on scaling UPI volumes and merchant transactions.</li>
</ul>


The 0.4% MDR is not pure fintech revenue. Exemptions, fee-sharing, merchant behaviour and competitive incentives will determine how much reaches profits.
Paytm is the strongest listed beneficiary: Its presence across consumer UPI and merchant acquiring allows it to earn from both sides of eligible transactions.
Pine Labs, MobiKwik benefit differently: Pine Labs gains through merchant acquiring, while MobiKwik’s upside depends on scaling UPI volumes and merchant transactions.


How MDR Will Impact Paytm, Pinelabs, MobiKwik?

<ul>
<li>
<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pb-fintech-limited-policybazaar" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:33470:1" rel="noopener">Policybazaar (POLICYBZ IN)</a> shares saw a roller coaster ride this week, following the announcement of a possible QIP and the cancellation. </li>
<li>The market did not cheer the management’s reasoning and commentary in its earnings call and as a result the stock took a beating the very next day. </li>
<li>Surprisingly, in a U-Turn the management has cancelled the QIP board-meet, post which the stock recovered by 9%. Is the narrative of the management influenced by the movements in share-prices?</li>
</ul>



Policybazaar (POLICYBZ IN) shares saw a roller coaster ride this week, following the announcement of a possible QIP and the cancellation. 
The market did not cheer the management’s reasoning and commentary in its earnings call and as a result the stock took a beating the very next day. 
Surprisingly, in a U-Turn the management has cancelled the QIP board-meet, post which the stock recovered by 9%. Is the narrative of the management influenced by the movements in share-prices?


PB Fintech- Where Stock Price Dictates the Narrative?

India

PB Fintech is the parent company of India's leading online financial services platforms, Policybazaar and Paisabazaar. The company operates as a digital marketplace aggregator, connecting consumers with insurance and lending partners, and offers insurance and credit products through its platforms. It was founded in 2008 and is headquartered in Gurugram, India.

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PB Fintech (POLICYBZ IN)

IFast: A Profitable Fintech Player that Deserves More Investor Attention

iFast Corporation is one of the few Fintech players in Asia that has been consistently making net profits since as early as 2011. It operates in...

Alec Tseung

Zomato Lock-Up - Last of the Softbank Selldown

In Aug 2022, Zomato completed the acquisition of 91% of Blinkit’s outstanding shares via issuing its own shares. This has led to two earlier...

Sumeet Singh

PB Fintech- What Changed in 28 Days?

PB stance on commission caps shifted drastically in a month, from downplaying regulatory concerns to calling them an "existential threat." The...

Nitin Mangal

How MDR Will Impact Paytm, Pinelabs, MobiKwik?

India’s decision to introduce a 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate on selected UPI merchant payments changes the economics of digital payments. The...

Nimish Maheshwari

PB Fintech- Where Stock Price Dictates the Narrative?

PB's share price drops after QIP announcement and earnings call. The management cancels QIP board-meet leading to stock recovery. This raises...

Nitin Mangal

Price Gauge

52-week Range

Market Cap (USDm)

P/E

Dividend (Yield)

IFast: A Profitable Fintech Player that Deserves More Investor Attention

iFast Corporation is one of the few Fintech players in Asia that has been consistently making net profits since as early as 2011. It operates in...

Alec Tseung

Zomato Lock-Up - Last of the Softbank Selldown

In Aug 2022, Zomato completed the acquisition of 91% of Blinkit’s outstanding shares via issuing its own shares. This has led to two earlier...

Sumeet Singh

PB Fintech- What Changed in 28 Days?

PB stance on commission caps shifted drastically in a month, from downplaying regulatory concerns to calling them an "existential threat." The...

Nitin Mangal

How MDR Will Impact Paytm, Pinelabs, MobiKwik?

India’s decision to introduce a 0.4% Merchant Discount Rate on selected UPI merchant payments changes the economics of digital payments. The...

Nimish Maheshwari

PB Fintech- Where Stock Price Dictates the Narrative?

​PB's share price drops after QIP announcement and earnings call. The management cancels QIP board-meet leading to stock recovery. This raises...

Nitin Mangal

PB's share price drops after QIP announcement and earnings call. The management cancels QIP board-meet leading to stock recovery. This raises...