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The Brief: Is India's IPO Engine Warming Up Again?

Welcome to The Brief, a newsletter from the team at Lightbox that cuts through the noise and serves up sharp insights on interesting developments in India's consumer markets. This week we're talking about quick commerce, the IPO market for venture capital and private equity backed companies, and more. Dive in!

By Team Lightbox

3rd May 2025

 

 

Good Morning!

After a couple of months of silence, the IPO engine is sputtering back to life. This week saw two startup heavyweights make very different moves in the public markets—and they’re offering an early peek into how the Street is feeling.

The IPOs Are Back (Sort Of)

 

Ather Energy: Mild Spark

EV maker Ather Energy closed its Rs 2,981 crore IPO with a 1.4x subscription. Not exactly a blockbuster—especially compared to Ola Electric’s 4.4x showing last year.

  • Offer: Rs 2,626 cr fresh + Rs 355 cr OFS
  • Sellers: Founders, Tiger Global, Caladium, 3SV, IIT Madras Incubation Cell.
  • Takeaway: EVs may still be hot in pitch decks, but the public markets are asking harder questions—starting with margins and scale.

Urban Company: Filing Mode

Urban Company filed its DRHP with SEBI for a Rs 1,900 crore IPO.

  • Fresh issue: Rs 429 crore
  • OFS: Rs 1,471 crore (Accel, Elevation, Tiger Global leading exits)
  • Nine months FY25 revenue: Rs 846 crore
  • Restated PBT: Rs 27 crore
  • Founders have sold shares worth Rs 780 crore pre-IPO

What’s interesting: The company’s slight profitability and strong brand recognition could help, but public investors will scrutinize how it handles operational scale.


 

Zomato Quits 15-Minute Delivery

 

Zomato (sorry—Eternal) is shutting down Quick and Everyday, its two quick food delivery offerings, launched just months ago.

Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal’s explanation: The infra just isn’t there, demand was tepid, and customer experience took a hit. Read more in the Q4 FY25 letter to shareholders.

Q4 FY25 snapshot:

  • PAT: Rs 39 cr (down 78% YoY)
  • Blinkit loss: Rs 178 cr (up 5x YoY)
  • Blinkit revenue: Rs 1,709 cr (up 122%)

TL;DR: Zomato is trimming the fat, but Blinkit’s burn may still keep investors up at night.


 

OYO Gets Cooking

IPO-bound OYO is setting up its own kitchens and QSR carts across company-run hotels, Townhouse by OYO.

  • Pilot: 100 hotels
  • Target: 1,500 by FY26
  • Expected impact: 5–10% of hotel-level revenue

What’s on the menu: Better margins, better control, and another lever to improve guest retention ahead of its market debut.


 

Dehaat Takes the Debt Route

Agritech platform Dehaat raised Rs 200 crore in venture debt from Trifecta Capital, a large part of which will be deployed to bankroll its inorganic expansion spree.

  • FY24 revenue: Rs 2,674 crore
  • FY24 loss: Rs 244 crore (down 34% YoY)
  • M&A tally: AgriCentral, YCook, Helicrofter, FarmGuide, and more.

What’s growing: A full-stack rural supply chain. But debt could be the devil hiding in the shadows.


 

Peak XV’s US Strategy

Peak XV Partners is quietly building its footprint in the US with LP-level investments in early-stage venture funds (ticket sizes: $1–10M), while doubling down on AI bets like Supabase and RapidCanvas.

The big play: Creating market access for 150+ India/SEA startups in its portfolio looking to scale westward.


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