EaseMyTrip Files Draft Papers For IPO, Looks To Raise $72 Mn

New Delhi-based online travel startup EaseMyTrip has started the process of being a publicly-listed company as it filed its draft papers with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

The papers filed with SEBI showed that the company is looking to raise INR 510 Cr ($72.13 Mn) through its initial public offering (IPO). For this, EaseMyTrip cofounders Nishant Pitti and Rikant Pitti will each sell shares worth nearly INR 255 Cr through the offer-for-sale mechanism. The company has told SEBI that the object of the public issue is to achieve the benefits of listing the equity shares on stock exchanges.

“Our company expects that listing of the equity shares will enhance our visibility and brand and provide liquidity to its existing shareholders,” it added. The issue is being managed by Axis Capital and JM Financial.

The speculations of its IPO first began in January 2019 with the reports that EaseMyTrip is planning to raise INR 1,500 Cr and held discussions with banks and law firms for the IPO process. Later in May 2019, it was reported that EaseMyTrip is likely to raise funds between INR 500 Cr and INR 750 Cr via IPO and was expected to file red herring in June 2019. Moreover last week, reports had surfaced that EaseMyTrip is close to filing its initial draft papers to go public to raise nearly INR 700 Cr.

EaseMyTrip was founded in 2008 by Nishant Pitti and Rikant Pitti. It offers deals on flight booking, hotels and holiday packages and charges zero convenience charge, which is one of its unique propositions for users.

Last year, the company also announced that it is expecting a growth of 10X in transaction value coming from hotel booking by the end of the financial year 2018-19. It is planning to increase its revenue by focusing on non-air products like hotels and bus bookings. In FY19, the company posted a net profit of INR 29.3 Cr from INR 6.6 Cr a year earlier. Revenue also grew 33% to INR 151.1 Cr.

Earlier this year, the company got into an expansive partnership with Jet Privilege— the loyalty programme co-owned by the defunct carrier Jet Airways and its Gulf partner Etihad Airways—to power all its booking and earning/burning miles as it diversified to other airlines after Jet’s shutdown. The company later rebranded itself as InterMiles.

Successful IPO By Startups

According to Datalabs by Inc42, Indian startups raised $5.85 Bn across 360 deals in H1 2019. Further, in terms of IPO environment, in September, Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma said that the company will start preparations for an initial public offering (IPO) within two years.

Sharma had said that while a public listing was ‘inevitable’, it was yet to construct a road map for it in 22-24 months. Paytm chief said he wants the firm to generate more cash before entering the public market.

Further, at the same time, Quikr also announced its plans to go public by 2021. Quikr founder and CEO Pranay Chulet said that the company is preparing for its IPO. The company hasn’t yet decided on its country of listing i.e India or the US. Chulet reportedly said it will take place in the course of the due diligence process.

Also, interestingly Chennai-based SaaS unicorn Freshworks is working towards an initial public offering (IPO) as early as 2021. The listing is expected to be on New York-headquartered stock exchange, NASDAQ.

IndiaMart, Matrimony, E2E Networks, etc have had successful IPO launches but not on Startup platforms. Recently, Alphalogic Techsys and Transpact listed themselves on the BSE startup platform.