Softbank-backed listed firm Unicommerce eSolutions on Monday said it will acquire Shipway, a Gurugram-based logistics software-as-a-service company, in a cash and stock deal, providing exit to its investors including Noida-based IndiaMART.
The e-commerce-focussed SaaS provider, part of the AceVector Group that also owns e-commerce firm Snapdeal, will pay Rs 68.4 crore for a 42.8% stake in Shipway in the first tranche, it said in an exchange filing.
The deal values Shipway at about Rs 160 crore. Per the deal, IndiaMART will get Rs 41.6 crore as a part of the divestment, about 2.3x of the amount it invested in the company.
IndiaMART, which runs a business-to-business-marketplace, had backed in Shipway in April 2021. It had invested Rs 18.2 crore for a 26% stake in Shipway.
Unicommece said it plans to acquire the remaining stake in Shipway through a merger or stock swap in the next year.
Shipway, founded in 2015, offers software solutions for the pre-purchase and post-purchase journeys of e-commerce. It provides an automated shipping solution software that algorithmically enables optimal courier allocation along with a marketing solution helping brands to target their customers using AI-enabled tools.
The acquisition will help Unicommerce expand its product suite to include solutions for courier aggregation, shipping automation and returns reduction, expanding its market opportunity. It will also enable the company to offer technology solutions that cover the entire e-commerce journey, including pre-purchase and other post-purchase segments.
“Our collective product suite of software solutions from Unicommerce and Shipway will be transformative, offering an unparalleled, one-stop, seamless solution to simplify e-commerce for businesses in India, including and beyond our over 6,500 customers,” said Kapil Makhija, managing director and chief executive of Unicommerce eSolutions.
Unicommerce, which listed on the stock exchanges in August this year, is backed by Softbank and B2 Capital, an entity controlled by Snapdeal founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal.
Snapdeal acquired a majority stake in Unicommerce in 2015 in a cash-and-stock transaction. It tried selling Unicommerce to Infibeam in 2018, but the negotiations were called off as certain conditions were not fulfilled in the stipulated period. SoftBank joined Unicommerce’s cap table in November 2021 with an investment of around Rs 111.6 crore.