In a major top management rejig, Softbank-backed Oyo has elevated Ankit Gupta to be the chief executive officer (CEO) of India, as the current India chief Rohit Kapoor takes over as the company's global marketing head.
Currently the CEO of Hotels and Homes - India, Gupta had already been heading the main business of Oyo in the country and will now also look at Workspaces following this elevation, the company said in a statement.
Ahead of public listing, the travel tech major also announced that its Global Chief Business Officer, Ankit Tandon will take on the additional responsibility of Southeast Asia with specific focus on Indonesia and the Middle East region as its CEO.
The Southeast Asia charge will now be given to Ankit Tandon, who has been the company's global chief business officer. He will specifically focus on Indonesia and the Middle East region as its CEO.
Kapoor, Tandon and Gupta will take on their new responsibilities effective 1st April 2022. All three leaders will report to the Founder & Group CEO, Ritesh Agarwal, the statement said.
Oyo, backed by investors including SoftBank Group Corp and Sequoia Capital, had made preliminary filings in September last year aiming for a Rs 8,430 crore ($1.1 billion) IPO in early 2022.
In January, Oravel Stays Ltd, which owns and operates hospitality unicorn Oyo Hotels and Homes, received in-principle nod from the National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange for its proposed listing.
While it is yet to receive approval from Securities Exchange and Board of India (Sebi), the IPO is likely to see further delays.
"Amid the global markets and geopolitical developments, the valuation will be more sanguine and given the uncertainty and pending regulatory nod, the company will certainly not want to pre-empt its decision on the timing and size of the IPO," a person close to the development said.
As per first reported by Bloomberg, Oyo parent is considering slashing its fundraising target by half or even shelving the IPO debut.
"It’s considering also halving its expected valuation from the $12 billion originally targeted, they said. Oyo could even decide to suspend its IPO plans, the report added.
Last month, in a relief to Oyo, the Delhi High Court also dismissed Zostel Hospitality Pvt Ltd's interim plea claiming 7% holding in Oravel Stays Ltd.
Oyo's investors include Softbank Group which owns 46.62%, Grab at 1.81%, Huazhu Hotels at 0.81%, while the Munjal family own 0.04% stake in the firm. Oyo’s 27-year old founder Agrarwal holds 8.21% stake while an affiliate promoter firm RA Hospitality Holdings Cayman has 24.94% stake.
In the IPO, Softbank Group, which owns over 46% stake in the company, plans to sell shares worth Rs 1,328.53 crore.
Agarwal and other investors such as Sequoia Capital and Lightspeed Ventures also do not plan to sell shares in the public listing.