Several top global private equity firms and pension funds are among the bidders looking to acquire a significant minority stake in the US-incorporated Indian analytics company Mu Sigma Inc, media reports said.
The Times of India identified private equity investors Blackstone, KKR & Co and Warburg Pincus, along with Canada's Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (OTPP), among the potential bidders for the stake held by General Atlantic and Mu Sigma CEO Ambiga Subramanian.
The report said General Atlantic and Subramanian can get as much as $600 million at a valuation of $1.5 billion. But it said the final valuation could take a hit because two large investors are considering an exit from the company.
In another report, The Economic Times said PE firms Blackstone, Bain Capital and CVC Capital Partners are competing with pension funds such as OTPP and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB). US-based software firm Palantir Technologies is also in discussions to acquire the stake, the report said.
Founder Dhiraj Rajaram is also looking to increase his holding in the company and is looking for financing. Rajaram has offered to buy at a $800-million valuation while the investors are looking to acquire a significant minority stake at a $1.1-1.2 billion valuation, it said.
Subramanian and private equity investor General Atlantic have a combined 48% stake in the company and have been seeking to jointly sell their stake.
About 30-35% of the stake in the company would be offered in the sale, the reports said.
Credit Suisse and Citigroup are helping find the buyers, The Economic Times reported. Subramanian seeks to retain some stake, it added.
Both reports cited Rajaram and Mu Sigma as saying the development is untrue.
The sale process comes after Rajaram and Subramanian made their divorce public in May. At the time, Rajaram had said that Subramanian would continue in the current role for now, but might not remain the CEO in the long term.
Subramanian had succeeded Rajaram as the CEO in February, becoming the first woman CEO at an Indian unicorn.
Founded in 2004, Mu Sigma provides analytics and decision-making support services to businesses in a wide range of industries and is backed by investors including General Atlantic, Sequoia Capital India, Mastercard Inc. and FMR LLC. Its early investors Accel India and FTV Capital had previously exited. Mu Sigma has so far raised close to $160 million from investors.
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