IPO: OYO eyes more than $1 billion

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Looks like the IPO season is set to continue and this time, it is the SoftBank-backed OYO is looking to raise more than $1.2 billion, according to a report in Moneycontrol. The report said he IPO will comprise a mix of primary issue and sale of secondary shares. However, it is unclear whether the hospitality startup will go for a domestic or a overseas listing. JP Morgan, Kotak Mahindra Capital and Citi Bank have been appointed by Oyo to manage the share sale. There was no statement issued by the Oyo Hotels, JP Morgan, and Citi Bank on this subject. 

Microsoft to invest?

OYO’s plans to list follows closely on the heels of the company raising $660 million in debt from global institutional investors to settle past debts and invest in product and technology.

Also, hotel owners in April had submitted claims worth Rs 160 crore against the company with the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).

According to a Reuters report published on June 30, it said that Microsoft Corp was in advance talks to invest an undisclosed amount in the Ritesh Agarwal-led company.

OYO is a leading technology and revenue growth platform for 100K+ small hotels and homeowners across 800 cities in 80 countries, including India, the US, UK, Europe, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East.

Agarwal had started OYO even before he turned 20. His company earned the unicorn tag in 2018 after it raised $1 billion from SoftBank Vision Fund and other investors.

The Covid-19 pandemic had a debilitating impact on the hospitality sector and OYO too struggled to stave of the impact.

In a note to employees in March, Agarwal had said the India business had become EBITDA positive.

“We expect gross profits to get stronger in 2021 as restrictions and lockdowns ease as well as vaccination coverage increases,” Agarwal had said, noting that India is the second market, after OYO Europe Homes, that has achieved profitability.