OfBusiness Sets The IPO Ball Rolling, Onboards Five Banks

SoftBank-backed B2B marketplace OfBusiness has reportedly roped in five banks for its up to $1 Bn initial public offering (IPO) targeted for next year.

The company has appointed five investment banks, including Axis Capital, Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, Citigroup and Bank of America for the IPO, Reuters reported, citing chief financial officer Bhavesh Keswani.

“We are very clear we are not going to time the market, we are profitable,” cofounder Nitin Jain added. 

He added that the process of merging and integrating internal businesses ahead of the IPO is ongoing.

The report further said that OfBusines aims to seek approval from India’s market regulator between March and June, targeting a late 2025 listing. 

The development comes amid a surge in Indian IPOs, with 290 companies raising more than $15.5 Bn as of mid-November this year, more than double compared to last year, data from LSEG showed.

The IPO will comprise a fresh issue worth $200 Mn while the remaining amount will be through an offer-for-sale component. Sources said the company is eyeing a valuation between $6 Bn and $9 Bn, though executives declined to comment on the valuation targets.

Recently OfBusiness undertook an ESOP liquidation programme worth INR 100 Cr this year, benefiting over 100 employees. Additionally, early investor Zodius Capital marked its complete exit through a $100-120 Mn secondary share sale to HNIs and family offices.

Founded in 2016 by Jain, Asish Mohapatra, Ruchi Kalra, Vasant Sridhar and Bhuvan Gupta, OfBusiness provides raw material procurement and financing solutions to SMEs in manufacturing and infrastructure sectors. 

The platform facilitates procurement of materials including metals, chemicals, polymers, and agri commodities.

The Delhi NCR-based unicorn has demonstrated strong financial performance, with consolidated operating revenue increasing 25% to INR 19,296.3 Cr in FY24, while net profit rose 30% to INR 603 Cr compared to INR 463.2 Cr in FY23.

Japanese tech investor SoftBank Group and US-based investment firm Tiger Global collectively hold approximately 15% stake in OfBusiness, while Alpha Wave Global maintains an 18% stake. The company has raised about $878 Mn in funding to date.

The startup’s fintech arm Oxyzo Financial Services is also reportedly planning a separate public listing, though no timeline has been specified.

Note: We at Inc42 take our ethics very seriously. More information about it can be found here.