Ather To Raise INR 286.5 Cr In Equity & Debt, Cofounders To Infuse INR 86.5 Cr

Electric vehicle (EV) startup Ather Energy is all set to raise INR 286.5 Cr in a mix of equity and debt. 

The Bengaluru-based startup’s board approved a proposal to raise an equity capital of INR 86.6 Cr from its founders – Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain – by issuing 74,148 Series F compulsory convertible preference shares.

Additionally, the electric two-wheeler startup’s board also approved raising INR 200 Cr of debt funding from Stride Ventures by issuing up to 20,000 non-convertible debentures.

The development was first reported by Entrackr.

The fundraise comes months after Hero MotoCorp said it would acquire an additional 3% stake in Ather for up to INR 140 Cr ($16.8 Mn). Earlier in September last year, Ather secured INR 900 Cr from existing shareholders Hero MotoCorp and GIC through a rights issue.

It was also reported in April this year that the EV manufacturer was in talks with existing investors to raise $75-90 Mn.

Earlier this year, reports suggested that existing investor Sachin Bansal had sold a significant portion of his shares in Ather Energy to Zerodha cofounder Nikhil Kamath.

Meanwhile, the filings also showed that the board of directors of Ather Energy approved the appointment of Kaushik Dutta as an independent director of the company for a five-year term, effective May 6, 2024.

Dutta is the founding co-director of non-profit Thought Arbitrage Research Institute and also a fellow member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.

Currently, Dutta serves as the chairman of Zomato and, in the past, he has worked with IICA of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Global Capital Markets among others.

Founded in 2013, Ather Energy is a major player in the Indian electric two-wheeler market. The startup recorded 4,052 units of two-wheeler EV registrations in April.

As per media reports, the startup is also eyeing a public listing, which can take place as soon as in the second half of 2024. Ather is said to be looking to raise as much as $400 Mn through a share sale at a valuation of $2 Bn.

The startup reported a 150% rise in its net loss to INR 864.5 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) from INR 344.1 Cr in the previous year. Revenue from operations jumped 4.3X to INR 1,783.6 Cr during the year under review from INR 408.5 Cr in FY22.

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