New Delhi, Oct. 31 -- Private equity (PE) firm General Atlantic's $600 million investment in PhonePe was a secondary transaction to cover employees' tax bills when they exercised stock options, according to two people familiar with the matter.

No new money came into the company, and neither the founders nor employees took cash off the table, they added.

This isn't a routine move, especially for a company gearing up for an Rs.11,000-12,000 crore initial public offering (IPO), said experts.

Mint explains:

General Atlantic's stake rose from about 4.4% to 9% after it bought shares from PhonePe's Esop (employee stock option plan) pool in a secondary transaction. The two people cited above said the funds were channelled to help the fintech ...