Bay Capital comes in as pre-IPO investor in PB Fintech
written by Bella PalmerPolicybazaar has generated a lot of interest from large investors before the company’s IPO
UK fund manager Bay Capital has come in as a pre-initial public offer (IPO) investor in PB Fintech Pvt. Ltd, the holding company of Policybazaar, which is set to go public through a Rs. 4,000 crore share sale, according to two people directly aware of the development.
Bay Capital has completed a secondary transaction, ahead of the insurance aggregator’s plans to launch an IPO within the next few months, one of them said on condition of anonymity. If Bay Capital chooses to be an anchor investor, it could invest over $100 million in Policybazaar.
Policybazaar, India’s largest online insurance comparison website, has generated a lot of interest from large investors before the company’s IPO.
The SoftBank-backed insurance aggregator’s other key investors include True North, Tencent, Tiger Global, Premji Invest, Temasek, Info Edge India Ltd and Ribbit Capital.
Policybazaar is India’s second Fintech startup to get unicorn status, after Paytm, and will be the first company to be listed from the country’s financial aggregator space.
Policybazaar became a unicorn in 2018 when it raised $200 million in a Series F round led by SoftBank. Paytm achieved unicorn status in 2017.
Several existing investors in the company want to monetize part of their stakes in the company, while some investors may look for a complete exit via the IPO. Therefore, the IPO is likely to be a combination of fresh issuance and an offer for sale (OFS).
While SoftBank and Singapore’s Temasek Holdings Pte each hold nearly 15% in the company, Tencent and Tiger Global own nearly 10% and 8%, respectively.
Bay Capital is an India-focused investment management firm, which manages money on behalf of institutions and endowments based in the US and Europe.
Anchor investors can invest up to Rs. 250 crore in Policybazaar in the IPO, according to the Securities and Exchange Board of India.
Policybazaar may allocate up to 60% of the portion available for allocation to qualified institutional buyers to anchor investors a day before the IPO opening.
In an IPO, at least two and a maximum of 15 anchor investors are allowed to be allocated up to Rs. 250 crore worth of shares.
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