SoftBank Nominee Paul Davison Steps Down From FirstCry’s Board

Omnichannel kids-focussed marketplace FirstCry said that SoftBank nominee Paul Davison has resigned as a non-executive director of the company. 

In an exchange filing, FirstCry said that Davison, who is a partner at the Japanese investment major, tendered his resignation on account of SoftBank’s internal compliance policies. 

“Regrettably, SoftBank’s internal compliance policies require that I resign and no longer hold the position of board director given FirstCry is now a public company. It has been a tremendous privilege to serve as a director on FirstCry’s board since SoftBank’s investment…,” Davison said in his resignation letter.

His resignation came into effect from the close of business hours of October 21, the company said.  “Consequent to his resignation, the composition of the Board and its Committees continues to be in compliance with the requirement of the applicable laws,” the filing said. 

As per reports, Davison has served on FirstCry’s board since July 15, 2019.

It is pertinent to note that the investment giant typically exits the boards of its portfolio companies after they go public owing to various internal governance and compliance mandates. 

For instance, SoftBank Investment Advisors’ former managing partner Munish Varma quit the boards of fintech major Paytm and insurtech giant Policybazaar’s parent PB Fintech in 2022 following their listings on Indian bourses.

Davison’s departure comes at a time when shares of FirstCry parent Brainbees Solutions are on an upward spiral. On October 15, the stock notched an all-time high of INR 734.25 during the intraday trading session on the BSE. 

The Pune-based company made a stellar debut on Dalal Street in August, with its shares listing at a 40% premium over its issue price. The stock debuted at INR 651 apiece on the NSE and 625 per share on the BSE as against the issue price of INR 465.

In September, brokerage Morgan Stanley initiated its coverage on the omnichannel platform with an ‘overweight’ rating and a price target (PT) of INR 818 per share. Besides, BofA Securities recently also initiated coverage on Brainbees with a ‘BUY’ rating and a PT of INR 770 apiece. 

FirstCry slashed its consolidated net loss by more than 31% to INR 75.68 Cr in the first quarter (Q1) of the financial year 2024-25 (FY25) from INR 110.42 Cr in the year-ago period. Operating revenue jumped 10% to INR 1,652.07 Cr during the quarter under review from INR 1,496.93 Cr in Q1 FY24.  

Shares of FirstCry closed 4.54% lower at INR 633.25 on the BSE on Tuesday (October 22).