A Japanese digital payments firm, PayPay, along with an affiliate of SoftBank Vision Fund II, recently completed a United States Initial Public Offering (IPO), raising $879.8 million by issuing American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) at $16 each, below the marketed range of $17 to $20.
Scheduled for debut on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the ticker PAYP, this IPO marks a significant milestone for PayPay. It sold 31.1 million ADRs, while SoftBank Vision Fund II’s affiliate contributed by selling another 23.9 million ADRs. Based on disclosed outstanding shares in SEC filings, PayPay’s market capitalization after the IPO is approximately $10.7 billion.
Investor Participation and Performance
Substantial institutional interest propelled the demand for ADRs well beyond the available supply. Key investors such as Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, a unit of Qatar Investment Authority, and an affiliate of Visa agreed to purchase shares worth up to $220 million collectively. Additionally, Mizuho Financial Group participated in selling approximately 8.7 million ADRs in a public offering without listing in Japan at the same price. The IPO was led by financial institutions including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan Chase, Mizuho, and Morgan Stanley. Following the IPO, SoftBank Group is expected to retain about 92% of voting control in PayPay.
For the nine months ending December 2025, PayPay’s financial performance showed a significant improvement with revenues reaching JPY 278.5 billion and profits of JPY 103.3 billion, compared to revenues of JPY 220.4 billion and profits of JPY 28.96 billion in the same period last year.
Established as a joint venture with India-based Paytm in 2018, PayPay has rapidly expanded its user base to over 72 million users in Japan. QR code payments now represent more than 9.6% of total cashless transactions in the country, up from just 0.2% in 2018. The company is exploring international markets and has already made its service accessible at over two million merchants in South Korea for Japanese customers.
The IPO forms part of SoftBank’s broader strategy to monetize assets, providing funds for new investments in artificial intelligence.
