PB Fintech, the India-based, corporate-backed marketing and consulting group that owns insurance listings platform PolicyBazaar, floated today in a Rs 56.3bn ($750m) initial public offering.
The offering will be open until November 3 and each share is priced at Rs 980 ($13.10). PB Fintech issued 26.2 million new shares totalling $500m while existing shareholders including internet and telecommunications firm SoftBank and its Vision Fund (through SVF Python II) are divesting $250m.
Founded in 2008, PB Fintech runs insurance policy comparison platform PolicyBazaar and PaisaBazaar, a similar tool focused on financial services products.
The company received $343m in pre-IPO funding on Friday from 155 anchor investors including insurers ICICI Prudential, Nippon Life, Bajaj Allianz Life, HDFC Life, SBI Life and Max Life.
Funds managed by financial services and investment group Fidelity, financial services provider Nomura and investment banking group Goldman Sachs also anchored the investment, as did HDFC Mutual Fund, SBI Mutual Fund, Axis Mutual Fund, Aditya Birla Sun Life Trustee, Kotak Mutual Fund, UTI Mutual Fund, Franklin Mutual Fund and DSP Mutual Fund.
New World Fund, American Funds Insurance Series, Blackrock, Baillie Gifford, Pacific Horizon Investment Trust and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board filled out the participants along with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, Aberdeen Global, Carmignac Portfolio, Schroder Fund, Baron Funds and WF Asian Smaller Companies Fund.
The net proceeds of the offering will be used to ramp up PB Fintech’s presence outside its home country, increase online and offline customers and conduct strategic investments and acquisitions.
The company had reportedly secured $630m in funding prior to the IPO, including a $75m round in March 2021 led by Falcon Edge Capital. Its investors also include classified listings platform operator Info Edge, internet group Tencent and Intel Capital, a subsidiary of chipmaker Intel.
