FirstCry IPO: Sachin Tendulkar, Infosy founder and others likely to buy shares of e-commerce company ahead of issue

SoftBank, which is the primary stakeholder of the company, has strategically offloaded additional shares, creating an opportunity for family offices and prominent investment firms to secure their positions in the company prior to its IPO.

According to a report by The Economic Times, family offices of Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, Ravi Modi of ethnic wear brand Manyavar, Infosys co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan, and TVS group family are among the buyers who have purchased equity shares of the company.

Through this transaction, SoftBank has reduced its ownership in FirstCry to less than 25 percent by divesting shares valued at ₹600 crore prior to the public offering. A few years ago, the investment firm held approximately 30 percent of the company.

Preceding this development, family offices belonging to Ranjan Pai (Manipal Group), Harsh Mariwala (Marico) investment office Sharrp Ventures, and Hemendra Kothari’s DSP family offices had acquired shares in FirstCry, as reported by ET in August.

SoftBank had previously injected $400 million into FirstCry, initially supporting the company in 2020. With a potential valuation of $4 billion upon listing, there remains around $1 billion worth of stake in the company.

Preliminary reports suggest that FirstCry is gearing up to initiate its initial public offering (IPO), likely following the Lok Sabha elections, anticipated to catalyze a surge in the Indian stock market.

While the company’s previous valuation stood at $3 billion, there are indications that the IPO valuation might reach $4 billion. The IPO aims to generate $500 million, with 37 percent of the stake allocated for a fresh issue and the remainder through Offer For Sale (OFS).

FirstCry’s capital table is poised to welcome new investors, including Premji Invest—the family office of Wipro founder Azim Premji, and the Mahindra group. The company is gearing up to file its IPO papers on December 29, and further details about the offering are slated to be disclosed at that time.

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Published: 25 Dec 2023, 07:17 PM IST