Japan's Softbank investment arm Softbank Vision Fund exited from Paytm in the June quarter at a loss of around $150 million, sources aware of the development said. Softbank invested about $1.5 billion in One97 Communications -- the owner of Paytm brand -- in tranches in 2017. "Softbank has exited Paytm at a loss of 10-12 per cent.
Unacademy on Monday said it has raised $440 million (about Rs 3,270.8 crore) in funding from a clutch of investors including Temasek, General Atlantic, and Softbank Vision Fund, valuing the edtech major at $3.44 billion. The investment is expected to help Unacademy expand its offerings, deepen its presence and compete more aggressively against rivals such as Byju's in the burgeoning ed-tech space in India that has been witnessing strong uptake amid the pandemic. The series H round was led by Temasek, with super pro-rata participation from General Atlantic, Tiger Global, and Softbank Vision Fund, a statement said.
Oravel Stays Limited, the parent company of travel-tech firm OYO, has received in-principle approval from BSE and NSE to list on the respective bourses, sources said. OYO has filed preliminary documents for a Rs 8,430 crore initial public offering (IPO). The offering will consist of a fresh issue of shares of up to Rs 7,000 crore and an offer-for-sale of as much as Rs 1,430 crore.
Digital payments firm Paytm is expected to seek shareholders' approval to raise up to Rs 16,600 crore through an initial share sale, giving it a valuation of over Rs 1.78 lakh crore, according to a source. The extraordinary general meeting of Paytm is scheduled for July 12 in which the company may seek approval to raise up to Rs 12,000 crore through issuance of fresh equity. Another Rs 4,600 crore is expected to be raised from the sale of equity shares by existing and eligible shareholders, according to the source.
A top management leadership team from SoftBank has been coming to India in the last few days to meet the founders of start-ups and other investors, signalling the country's emergence as a pivotal market for the global investment giant. Based on current estimates, India accounts for nearly 10 per cent ($20 billion) of SoftBank's invested assets under management (AUM) globally. That makes the country its third largest market after the US and China.
The shareholders have approved raising of Rs 12,000 crore during the initial public offer and sale of secondary shares will take the total amount to Rs 16,600 crore. "Shareholders have approved all the proposals at the extraordinary general meeting. "The shareholders have approved the proposal to raise capital and the fresh issue of shares of up to Rs 12,000 crore during the IPO.
Unacademy is conducting another round of job cuts and laying off 350 employees or 10 per cent of its workforce of 3,500, as the SoftBank-backed edtech firm targets profitability and reduces costs, according to an internal note sent by Gaurav Munjal, co-founder and CEO of Unacademy group, to the staff. Munjal said the restructuring exercise would affect about 10 per cent of employees across the group. "I am deeply saddened to share that we will have to say goodbye to some of our extremely talented Unacademy employees," said Munjal in the letter addressed to employees and reviewed by Business Standard.
Unacademy may see a funding dry spell for at least next 12-18 months and even last till 24 months and will cut costs to weather the lean period, said the chief executive of the education technology unicorn that recently laid off more than 600 employees. "This is a test for all of us. We must learn to work under constraints and focus on profitability at all costs. We must survive the winter," said Unacademy's co-founder and CEO Gaurav Munjal in a letter to the employees. "Winter is here. We are looking at a time when the funding will dry up for at least 12-18 months.
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