SoftBank Likely To Exit Zomato With 1.1% Stake Sale

Japanese tech investor SoftBank’s SVF Growth is reportedly looking to offload another 1.1% stake in Zomato in a block deal worth $135 Mn.

As per multiple media reports, SVF Growth is expected to sell the shares at INR 120.5 apiece, which is a slight discount to Zomato’s close at INR 121.8 on the BSE on Thursday (December 7).

At the end of September 2023 quarter, SVF Growth (Singapore) Pte Ltd held a 2.17% stake in Zomato with 18.71 Cr shares. In October, the Japanese investor sold a 1.1% stake, or 9.36 Cr shares, in the foodtech major.

If the stake sale takes place, it would mark a complete exit of SoftBank from Zomato.

It is pertinent to note that SoftBank has been lowering its stake in the listed new-age Indian entities for the last few months. In August this year, SVF Growth offloaded its 1.15% stake, or 10 Cr shares, in Zomato, bringing down its holding in the company to 2.17%.

On the other hand, SoftBank’s SVF Doorbell (Cayman) offloaded 2.5% of its stake in logistics unicorn Delhivery last month for almost INR 740 Cr. The Japanese firm has also been trying to exit other listed Indian startups from its portfolio, including Paytm and PB Fintech.

Meanwhile, a few other international investment firms, including China’s Alipay and Alibaba, have also been trying to exit the listed companies from their India portfolio.

Alipay exited Zomato last week by selling its entire 3.44% stake in the company via multiple block deals worth a cumulative INR 3,336.7 Cr. However, the shares were lapped up by investors like Morgan Stanley and Fidelity Investment. 

In November, Warren Buffett-led Berkshire Hathaway also exited Paytm by offloading its entire 2.46% stake in the company for about INR 1,370.6 Cr.

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