Sachin Bansal's startup Navi Technologies has received the market regulator's nod for an Initial Public Offering (IPO), giving the Flipkart co-founder a shot in the arm, as he seeks to build a financial services conglomerate.
According to details on the website of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), an observation letter was issued to Navi Technologies in response to its filings on September 5.
Moneycontrol has reached out to Navi Technologies and Sachin Bansal on the approval, their response is awaited.
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Navi Technologies had filed draft papers in March this year with SEBI to raise up to Rs 3,350 crore through a fresh issue of shares. The IPO will have an offer for sale (OFS) by Bansal who holds a 97.39 percent stake in the fintech.
Navi Technologies is a tech-driven financial products and services company. Since the company's incorporation, it has expanded offerings to include personal loans, home loans, general insurance, and mutual funds. It also offers microfinance loans through Chaitanya India Fin Credit.
As per the DRHP, the fintech plans to invest the proceeds of the IPO in subsidiaries Navi Finserv and Navi General Insurance, besides general growth plans.
While Navi registered a profit of Rs 71.1 crore in FY21, the company incurred losses to the tune of Rs 206.42 crore in the first nine months of FY22.
The company had AUMs worth Rs 1,418 crore for its personal loans vertical and Rs 177 crore for home loans in the same quarter.
In an interview to Moneycontrol dated September 2, 2021, Sachin Bansal had said he compares Navi (short for ‘navigator’) to banks and NBFCs.
“We are trying to work backwards and see what a bank for a billion people looks like. It has to be a lot more automated, things have to be a lot more simple, users should be able to help themselves. Banking should be as easy as going on Swiggy and ordering food,” he said.
Bansal founded Navi Technologies in December 2018 just six months after quitting his first venture Flipkart, which was snapped up by Walmart for $16 billion the same year.
Meanwhile, Go Digit General Insurance, which is led by insurance industry veteran Kamesh Goyal and backed by Prem Watsa's Fairfax Capital is yet to get a go-ahead. SEBI has not yet issued observations for Go Digit's IPO as per details on the market regulator's website.
Go Digit General Insurance did not comment on the update.
