OYO to Target $9 Billion Valuation in IPO

Oyo Hotels is eyeing a valuation of about $9 billion (Rs 66,700 crore) in its initial public offering after preliminary conversations with potential investors.  The SoftBank Group-backed start-up is expected to get the green light to proceed with the offering this week or next after filing preliminary documents last year. The IPO will consist mainly of primary shares, or those sold by the company, and a smaller portion of secondary stock. SoftBank, which holds about 47% of the equity, aims to sell a small percentage of shares. Agarwal, who holds about a third of the stock, does not plan to part with shares. Existing investors Sequoia Capital, Lightspeed Ventures and Greenoaks Capital Management also do not intend to sell shares. Such muted expectations reflect Oyo’s financial struggles and a more measured appetite for IPOs in India following the disastrous stock market debut of Paytm. The digital payments provider raised a record $2.4 billion in its November offering, but shares quickly plummeted and now trade at about half the IPO price. Revenue plummeted during the fiscal ended in March 2021, but Oyo made progress toward profitability. It lost Rs 3,930 crore for the fiscal year, down from Rs 12,800 crore the year. The valuation Oyo is targeting would be lower than the $12 billion initially reported in local media last year and probably lower than the $10 billion level the startup hit in 2019.