- By Priyanka Payal
- Thu, 24 Aug 2023 06:10 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Cosmetic brand Mamaearth is mulling raising approximately $120-150 million in a new funding round prior to its upcoming initial public offering (IPO), according to a report on Thursday (August 24). Earlier this month, Mamaearth's parent company Honasa Consumer Private Limited got approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) for its IPO. In March this year, Honasa Consumer delayed its IPO amidst unfavourable market conditions.
According to a Moneycontrol report, Honasa Consumer has reportedly conducted preliminary discussions with investors including SoftBank, sovereign wealth funds like Singapore's GIC and Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), and pre-IPO investors like Fidelity Investments to raise money at a valuation of $1.5 billion.
The round will mostly be a secondary share sale, as Mamaearth, a Direct-to-consumer (D2C) unicorn profitable company, does not need a primary capital infusion at this time, as per sources.
Even though founders Varun and Ghazal Alagh are confident of delivering an exit to investors via their upcoming public listing, a few early investors want to offload shares before the IPO, according to a source.
If Mamaearth gets strong support from investors it could potentially become the first venture capital-funded unicorn to be listed on Indian bourses this year. Five Star Business Finance was the last venture capital-backed unicorn to go public last year.
The draft papers filed by Mamaearth with Sebi in December last year comprised a fresh issuance of shares worth Rs 400 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs 4.68 crore shares by promoters as well as investors.
The shareholders who will dilute their holdings through the IPO include the founders Varun and Ghazal Alagh, Sofina Ventures SA, Evolvence, Fireside Ventures, Stellaris Venture Partners, Snapdeal founder Kunal Bahl, Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Rishabh Harsh Mariwala, and Rohit Kumar Bansal. As reported earlier, Peak XV Partners is unlikely to participate in the OFS.
Mamaearth was Founded in 2016, by the husband-wife duo Varun and Ghazal Alagh (of 'Shark Tank' fame). The company turned unicorn in 2021 when it raised $52 million in a round that was led by Peak XV Partners.
