Private equity major General Atlantic, Singapore state investor Temasek and investment bank Goldman Sachs are in the race to acquire up to 12% stake for over $100 million (Rs 688 crore at current exchange rate) in BookMyShow at a valuation of around $1 billion, three persons in the know told The Times of India.
Existing investor SAIF Partners, which holds a 5.6% stake, is looking for a complete exit, with Accel India targeting a partial exit. Online ticketing platform BookMyShow, owned and operated by Bigtree Entertainment Pvt. Ltd, is seeking a valuation of about $1.3 billion, the persons added, asking not to be named.
The talks are now at an advanced stage and a deal is expected in the next few weeks, the report said.
BookMyShow raised $100 million from TPG Growth and other existing investors in July last year at a valuation of over $800 million.
Meanwhile, online pharmacy venture PharmEasy, owned and operated by 91Streets Media Technologies Pvt. Ltd, is looking to raise up to $120 million (Rs 825.4 crore at current exchange rate). Persons in the know told The Economic Times that the equity round of funding will be led by a host of new investors including CDPQ, which is the second-largest Canadian pension fund, and LGT, the private banking and asset management group controlled by the Liechtenstein princely family. The funding will value PharmEasy at up to $600 million, the persons added.
Other new investors, venture capital firm Aspada and a Korean investment firm, will join, the report mentioned.
Additionally, talks with SoftBank are continuing, the persons added.
Separately, three persons in the know told The Economic Times that US-based venture capital fund General Catalyst has held talks with fintech firm Cred to be a part of the company’s latest $120 million (about Rs 825 crore at current exchange rate) Series B round being led by existing investors including Sequoia Capital, Ribbit Capital and Israeli-Russian billionaire Yuri Milner’s Apolleto Asia.
China’s Hillhouse Capital is the other new investor participating in this round. Cred, set up by Freecharge co-founder Kunal Shah and owned and operated by Dreamplug Technologies Pvt. Ltd, is likely to be valued at up to $500 million, which will be a substantial jump from the $75 million valuation it commanded in its previous round, the report added.
In another development, persons in the know told The Economic Times that bulge-bracket private equity firm Carlyle Group is in advanced talks to invest around $45 million (Rs 308 crore) in news and content application Dailyhunt at a pre-money valuation of $650 million (about Rs 4,471 crore).
Japan’s SoftBank has also held talks with Dailyhunt to invest $120-150 million in the company, the report added.
Dailyhunt, which looks to delve deeper into the vernacular content space while continuing to stave off stiff competition from its deep-pocketed Chinese rivals, in March announced a big investment of over Rs 1,200 crore from a hedge fund of Goldman Sachs.
Meanwhile, two people in the know told The Economic Times that private equity fund Kedaara Capital Advisors is looking to take a controlling stake in Imperial Auto Industries, one of the oldest automobile parts makers in India.
Haryana-based Imperial is expected to get up to Rs 1,200 crore ($174.4 million at current exchange rate) from the business, the report mentioned. “Discussions with Kedaara are in the initial stages,” said one of the persons cited above.
In April 2018, Kedaara had acquired Sunbeam Auto Pvt. Ltd, a manufacturer and supplier of automotive aluminium die-casting components, for Rs 650 crore.
Also, Kerala-based lender CSB Bank, earlier known as The Catholic Syrian Bank Ltd, is set to file its papers for an initial public offering (IPO), two people aware of the development told Mint.
Last year, Canadian billionaire Prem Watsa’s Fairfax had acquired a 51% stake in CSB Bank for around Rs 1,200 crore.
In March 2019, CVR Rajendran, chief executive of CSB Bank, told VCCircle that the lender is looking to go public.
The IPO will largely be an offer for sale by existing investors, said the report.
Meanwhile, OYO Hotels and Homes is preparing for an IPO in the next two to three years, two people aware of the development told Mint.
When it happens, the share sale could value OYO, the country’s second-most valuable startup after Paytm, at up to $18 billion, the report said.
The listing will most likely be overseas as OYO is not yet profitable and the US market seems more receptive to such business models.
The company has begun taking steps towards the IPO. These include share buyback plans of founder Ritesh Agarwal and streamlining business into separate units, the report added.
It was reported yesterday that Agarwal is in the midst of buying back shares from early investors Sequoia Capital and Lightspeed Venture Partners to bulk up his ownership from 10% to 33% and is in talks with financial institutions to raise $2 billion in secured debt by pledging his shares.
Separately, ed-tech unicorn Byju’s is raising another $150 million (about Rs 1,028 crore at current exchange rate) in a fresh funding round being led by sovereign wealth fund Qatar Investment Authority and joined by US-based investors at a valuation of $5.7 billion, two persons in the know told TechCircle.
Byju’s latest regulatory filings viewed by TechCircle showed that the company has already received $85.6 million -- $52.64 million from Qatar Investment Authority and the rest from Owl Ventures and DIC Company Ltd.
