Etailer SaleBhai Receives In-Principle Approval From BSE To Launch IPO

Salebhai, an Ahmedabad-based etailer of regional products, has received in-principle approval from the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) to file its initial public offering (IPO), within a month of filing a request to the BSE.

The company will be issuing 22,59,600 shares, offering 26.58% of its equity in the market to raise $3.48 Mn (INR 23.73 Cr). Reports estimate that the IPO is likely to take place in July 2018.

SaleBhai is one of the first companies to raise money through the public route at such an early stage. SaleBhai was launched in September 2015 by Vishwavijay Singh and Purba Kalita. The startup aims to be a discovery platform for migrant communities to source authentic products from their native places.

Commenting on the development, Vishwavijay Singh, co-founder, SaleBhai, said, “With the BSE approving our draft prospectus, we are well on our way of being the first B2C ecommerce company to have a public issue, and we are grateful to our customers, our backers, and our wonderful team members on this remarkable occasion.”

SaleBhai plans to use the funds raised through the IPO to grow the company through increased customer acquisition, an improved IT platform, the addition of more authentic sellers and product categories on its platform, and by making the customer experience smoother and effortless.

Monarch Networth Capital Ltd (Monarch) is acting as the issue’s lead manager, while Skyline Financial Services Pvt Ltd will act as the Registrar to the issue.

The startup has raised more than $1.5 Mn capital from investors such as the Times Group’s Brand Capital and 71 HNIs, among others.

SaleBhai enables people living away from home order a range of specialities including sweets, chocolates, bakery items, spices, dry fruits, beverages, pickles, handicrafts, paintings, among others. These products are supplied globally from a vendor base of 400 from over 100 Indian cities.

Vishwa Vijay had earlier told Inc42 that the portal operates solely on the marketplace model, and has low operational costs. Also, he claimed to have 22% repeat customers on the platform.

BSE And NSE: Enabling Startups To Go Public

In order to boost the Indian startup ecosystem, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had set up a panel to explore ways to make listing attractive for startups.

In 2013, India’s largest stock exchange, the NSE, had launched Emerge Institutional Trading Platform (ITP), a dedicated platform that enables startups to list with or without an initial public offering (IPO).

The Sebi panel will review the Emerge ITP framework in the current context and identify areas, if any, for further changes.

While NSE Emerge, the NSE’s SME listing platform, has roped in 44 companies, of which 31 got listed in 2016-17 alone, raising $55.8 Mn (INR 363.23 Cr), according to the NSE’s latest annual report, Emerge ITP hasn’t seen too many listings.

Inc42 had earlier reported that BSE India is set to launch the BSE Startup platform on July 9 with the aim of facilitating the listing of technology startups in IT, ITES, biotech, 3D printing, spacetech, and ecommerce.

The platform will also aid in the listing of startups from other sectors such as hi-tech defence, drones, nanotechnologies, artificial intelligence, big data, virtual reality, e-gaming, robotics, genetic engineering, and more.

At present, various startups have lined up to raise funds through IPOs while others like Matrimony, E2E Networks etc have had successful IPO launches.

Ecommerce logistics startup Delhivery is also looking at its next phase of growth with a $350 Mn IPO in the next few months. Also, Delhi-based online marketplace IndiaMART is working on an IPO that could see it raise $73.53 Mn-$88.24 Mn (INR 500-600 Cr) through a mix of primary and secondary share sales.

With startups like SaleBhai IPO going in for IPOs, other startups are likely to be inspired to go the public listing way to raise funds.