Groww, backed by Satya Nadella, set to become first Indian startup to go public after U.S.-to-India move

Groww, India’s largest retail brokerage firm, is acceptable to trial the country’s nationalist markets with a multi-billion-dollar IPO. The listing comes comes conscionable implicit a twelvemonth aft the institution restructured its firm headquarters from Delaware backmost to India — a determination that could marque it the archetypal Indian startup to database astatine location pursuing a relocation from the U.S.

Backed by Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and marquee investors including Y Combinator, Ribbit Capital, and Tiger Global, Groww’s listing — expected aboriginal this twelvemonth — is acceptable to treble arsenic a large exit accidental for planetary task funds. The 3 concern firms are offloading astir 236 cardinal shares — astir 5.6% of Groww’s full equity basal — per the draught IPO documents filed connected Tuesday. That makes them the azygous largest selling bloc, accounting for astir 41% of each shares being offered to the public.

Pine Labs, Razorpay, Meesho, and Zepto are among the Indian startups that person precocious shifted their basal backmost home. Walmart-backed PhonePe relocated its office from Singapore to India successful 2022, portion Flipkart — erstwhile its genitor and besides backed by Walmart — likewise announced plans to determination its office from Singapore to India earlier this year.

Last year, Groww became 1 of the archetypal startups to displacement its office backmost to India from the U.S. The startup paid astir $159 cardinal successful taxes arsenic portion of the move.

Relocating their basal backmost location helps startups align with evolving section regulations and conscionable requirements for home banal listings. It besides makes consciousness to pat India’s nationalist markets, fixed the expanding retail capitalist basal and rising appetite for IPOs. The inclination reflects the increasing maturity and attractiveness of India’s superior markets compared to overseas alternatives.

While U.S. investors program to offload a ample chunk of their holdings successful Groww, founders Lalit Keshre, Harsh Jain, Neeraj Singh, and Ishan Bansal unneurotic are selling lone astir 4 cardinal shares — lone 0.7% of the full connection for sale, per the draught prospectus.

The tiny merchantability signals that Groww’s founders are holding connected to astir each their equity, successful opposition to the established investors who are utilizing the IPO arsenic an exit route.

Groww plans to rise ₹10.6 cardinal (approximately $121 million) successful caller backing from the IPO, on with the secondary merchantability of 574 cardinal shares by existing shareholders, expected to beryllium priced astatine ₹5–6 cardinal (roughly $568–$682 million). The IPO is expected to worth the Bengaluru-based institution astatine $9 billion.

In the fiscal twelvemonth ending March 31, Groww reported full income of ₹40.6 cardinal (about $462 million), up 45% year-on-year, with nett aft taxation of ₹18.2 cardinal (roughly $208 million). The startup had posted a nett nonaccomplishment of astir ₹8 cardinal (around $92 million) successful the erstwhile year, chiefly owed to expenses tied to its Delaware office relocation.

As of June, Groww had astir 37.4 cardinal idiosyncratic demat accounts (digital accounts that clasp securities electronically), representing astir 19% of India’s market, on with 12.6 cardinal progressive clients connected the National Stock Exchange, adjacent to a 26% share. The level besides counted astir 17 cardinal progressive systematic concern plans (SIPs, which are recurring monthly investments) and 9 cardinal unsocial communal money investors, becoming the lone concern app successful the state to surpass 100 cardinal cumulative downloads.

The offering is being advised by JPMorgan Chase, Kotak Mahindra Bank, Citigroup, Axis Bank and Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors.