Fintech Unicorn Groww Gears Up for IPO with Pre-Listing Fundraise

Stockbroking platform Groww is in advanced talks to raise between $200 million and $250 million in a pre-IPO funding round ahead of its planned listing by late 2024 or early 2025. Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC is expected to lead the round, with participation from existing investor Tiger Global and possibly other backers.

The Bengaluru-based investment tech unicorn is reportedly seeking a valuation of around $6.8 billion, more than double its last valuation of $3.1 billion in 2021. While Groww has not officially commented on the development, reports indicate that the discussions are ongoing as the company prepares for its public market debut.

The pre-IPO funding could raise Groww’s valuation to about $6.5 billion. The company has secured nearly $400 million from investors, including Tiger Global, YC Continuity, Ribbit Capital, and Peak XV. Its most recent funding round was in October 2021, when it raised $251 million in a Series E round at a valuation of approximately $3 billion.

The company has reportedly engaged investment banks to manage the offering, including Kotak Mahindra Capital, JP Morgan, Axis Capital, Citi, and Motilal Oswal. It plans to file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with SEBI by April-May, with a listing expected by late 2024 or within FY26.

Established in 2017 by Neeraj Singh, Ishan Bansal, and Lalit Keshre, Groww is an online investment platform that enables users to trade stocks, ETFs, and IPOs. With over 13 million monthly active users as of February, it remains one of India’s leading stockbroking firms. Ahead of its IPO, the company recently moved its domicile back to India.

Groww’s revenue from operations climbed to ₹3,145 crore in FY24, but the company reported a net loss of ₹805 crore. The losses were mainly due to a one-time tax payment of ₹1,340 crore related to its domicile shift from the US to India, which was completed earlier this year.

Despite maintaining its position as a market leader, Groww saw a slight drop in its active user base, which fell to 1.3 crore in January from 1.32 crore the previous month amid a broader market correction. The overall brokerage industry also experienced a decline, with active users dropping to 4.89 crore from 5.02 crore. Meanwhile, the securities brokerage market is projected to grow at an 8% CAGR, reaching $6.21 billion by 2030.