CCI Approves KKR’s Proposal To Acquire Stake In Rebel Foods

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SUMMARY

The CCI said that KKR’s subsidiary Royce Asia Holdings will acquire an undisclosed amount of shares and CCPS of Rebel Foods via a secondary transaction

Earlier, it was reported that KKR was all set to buy shares worth $50 Mn to $75 Mn from existing investors, Peak XV Partners and Coatue, at a valuation of $800 Mn to $860 Mn

Last week, Rebel Foods raised a mega $210 Mn funding in its Series G round, led by Temasek

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has greenlit private equity (PE) giant KKR’s proposal to acquire a stake in cloud kitchen unicorn Rebel Foods.

The CCI said that KKR’s subsidiary Royce Asia Holdings will acquire an undisclosed amount of shares and compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS) of the startup via a secondary transaction.

“Accordingly, absent any horizontally overlapping, and or vertically/ complementary business activities of the parties in India, the relevant market need not be defined and may be left open as the proposed transaction will not lead to any adverse effect on competition in India… The proposed transaction is being filed under the green channel route,” the CCI said in a statement.

Under the green channel route, a transaction is deemed to be approved after being intimated to the CCI if it does not raise any risk of an appreciable adverse effect on competition.

This comes a couple of days after reports surfaced that KKR was all set to buy shares worth $50 Mn to $75 Mn from existing investors of Rebel Foods, including Peak XV Partners and Coatue, via a secondary transaction. As per reports, the funds would be raised at a valuation of $800 Mn to $860 Mn.

Last week, Rebel Foods raised a mega $210 Mn funding in its Series G round led by Temasek, with participation from existing investor Evolvence. The round was a mix of primary and secondary transactions.

Founded in 2011 by Jaydeep Barman and Kallol Banerjee, Rebel Foods operates multiple quick-service restaurant (QSR) brands such as Behrouz Biryani, Ovenstory Pizza, The Good Bowl, SLAY Coffee, and Wendy’s.

The startup has raised more than $773 Mn in funding till date and is backed by the likes of Lightbox, Evolvence, among others.

In October this year, reports claimed that the cloud kitchen unicorn was looking to list on the Indian bourses in the coming 12-18 months.

On the financial front, Rebel Foods managed to trim its net loss by 42% to INR 378.2 Cr in the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 656.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue jumped 19% to INR 1,420.2 Cr from INR 1,195.2 Cr in FY23.