Info Edge Launches Share Sale To Raise Up To $250 Mn

Indian internet company and parent of jobs portal Naukri.com, Info Edge, on Tuesday, announced a qualified institutional placement (QIP) to raise up to INR 1,875 Cr. ($250 Mn).

In an exchange filing, the company informed that the Fund Raise Committee, at its meeting held on August 4, had approved the opening of the QIP. The floor price per equity share has been fixed at INR 3,177.18 per share. 

The company, in the exchange filing, further informed that the Fund Raise Committee would meet on August 7 to consider, determine and approve the closing date of the QIP. On Tuesday, Info Edge shares closed trading at ₹3,200.05 apiece, up 1.43% on the BSE.

In a prospectus filed with the stock exchange, the company said that the amount raised through the QIP would be used for funding business activities and general corporate purposes in line with the company’s growth strategy. 

Info Edge runs online classified businesses such as Naukri.com, 99acres.com, Jeevansathi.com, and Shiksha. The company also counts foodtech unicorn Zomato and insurance aggregator PolicyBazaar in its portfolio, besides edtech venture NoPaperForms and B2B ecommerce platform ShopKirana.

Last month, Info Edge invested $6.33 Mn in video and live stream-led social commerce platform BulBul. The company invested the amount through IE Venture Fund I. As part of the agreement, Info Edge acquired 416 ordinary shares and 2002 Series A Preference Shares, through a mix of the primary and secondary mode of acquisition. Info Edge has a 17.82% stake in the company.

In June, during an investor presentation for results of the fourth quarter (Q4) of the fiscal year (FY) 2020, Info Edge revealed that its investments had grown 2.29x in six years since FY14, from INR 336 Cr in FY14 to crossing over INR 1,000 Cr in FY19 with INR 1,037 Cr in the year and INR 1,108 Cr in FY20. The company said that despite an adverse impact on operations due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown, it was seeing growth opportunities through investments in technology-oriented and innovation-oriented startups.

Overall the company has 21 active investments worth INR 1108 Cr at the end of FY20. In January this year, the company launched the INR 100 Cr IE Venture Fund to invest in tech-enabled startups which create, market and distribute innovative products and services that benefit consumers at large. The investments through the fund include Dotpe Pvt Ltd (INR 10.4 Cr), Qyuki Digital Media Pvt Ltd (INR 25.2 Cr), Intellihealth Solutions Pvt Ltd (INR. 3.7 Cr), Fanbuff Esports India Pvt Ltd (INR 3.5 Cr), and BulBul (INR 63.3 lakhs).