Fintech fans, listen up! Pine Labs, the payment technology wizard backed by giants PayPal and Mastercard, just stole the spotlight in India’s stock market with a sparkling IPO debut. On its very first trading day, Pine Labs zoomed 14% above its issue price, proving that investors believe big in its fintech magic. This $440 million public offering makes Pine Labs the second-largest Indian fintech listing of 2025, trailing only behind online broker Groww’s nearly $750 million splash. The stock opened at ₹242 and reached a thrilling peak of ₹284 before settling at ₹252, way up from the ₹221 issue price. This run-up values the Gurugram-based company at a hefty ₹289 billion (about $3.3 billion). Although this is a notch lower than its $5 billion private valuation in 2022, it sends a clear message: Pine Labs is a hot ticket in the race to global fintech fame. Founded way back in 1998, Pine Labs started as a simple point-of-sale terminal provider. But now it’s a payment powerhouse, operating in 20 countries including Malaysia, Singapore, Australia, UAE, the U.S., and parts of Africa. Its services have blossomed to include bill payments, account aggregation, and a slew of merchant services. In India, Pine Labs battles titans like Razorpay, Paytm, and PhonePe, but it hit a major milestone by becoming profitable in the June quarter with ₹47.86 million net profit, a big leap from last year’s losses. Revenue is on a constant rise too, up 17.9% year-over-year to ₹6.16 billion ($69 million), with overseas earnings climbing to about ₹943 million ($11 million). The buzz doesn’t stop there. CEO Amrish Rau stirred the crowd at Pine Labs’ listing ceremony, saying, “We will never stop being a startup,” and cheekily adding, “Now that we are a listed company, [that word] will not be heard in our halls.” Big names like Peak XV Partners, Temasek, PayPal, and Mastercard sold some shares during the IPO. Shailendra Singh of Peak XV Partners praised the company, saying, “Pine Labs never wanted to compete on price. It always wanted to compete on a superior proposition. And we know this company would keep compounding because there were such strong moats in the business.” Peak XV, which began backing Pine Labs in 2009 amid the financial crisis, is enjoying back-to-back public successes with Pine Labs and Groww listing recently. Pine Labs’ shining debut comes at a time when India’s IPO scene is buzzing. Startups from tech to e-commerce are racing for the public market, encouraged by investor hunger and easier financing. Looking ahead, Pine Labs plans to stretch its wings further across the globe while rolling out new products and services to tap into India’s fast-growing digital crowd. CEO Rau confidently sums it up: “Our core business will keep expanding. Our moats will be strengthened, and margins will grow.” Stay tuned as Pine Labs continues to rewrite the rules of the fintech game both in India and beyond!