Paytm Shares Crash 10% on UPI MDR Rumors

New Delhi, Jun 12 (PTI) Shares of One97 Communications, the owner of Paytm brand, on Thursday tumbled 10 per cent, amid reports that the government is planning to impose Merchant Discount Rate (MDR) on large-ticket UPI transactions.

However, the finance ministry has termed these claims as "false, baseless, and misleading".

The stock tanked 9.99 per cent to Rs 864.20 on the BSE.

At the NSE, it dropped 10 per cent to Rs 864.40.

The finance ministry has said no MDR will be levied on transactions through Unified Payments Interface platforms.

"Speculation and claims that the MDR will be charged on UPI transactions are completely false, baseless, and misleading," the ministry said in a post on X on Wednesday.

"Such baseless and sensation-creating speculations cause needless uncertainty, fear and suspicion among our citizens. The Government remains fully committed to promoting digital payments via UPI," it said.

MDR is the cost paid by a merchant to a bank for accepting payment from their customers via digital means. The merchant discount rate is expressed in percentage of the transaction amount.

The ministry's clarification came following reports that the government is planning to impose MDR on large-ticket UPI transactions.