SoftBank-backed InMobi plans $1B IPO in India
What's the story
InMobi, a mobile advertising platform backed by SoftBank Group, is reportedly planning an initial public offering (IPO) in India. The company hopes to raise as much as $1 billion through the move. According to The Economic Times, InMobi is looking for arrangers for its Mumbai IPO and intends to file an initial draft prospectus with regulators this year.
Valuation prospects
InMobi's potential valuation for the IPO
The IPO could see InMobi being valued between $5 billion and $6 billion. However, these are early-stage discussions and no final decisions have been made yet. If the company goes ahead with its Mumbai listing, it will join a long list of Indian tech start-ups taking this route instead of overseas share sales.
Market shift
Trend of Indian tech start-ups opting for domestic listings
The move comes as a part of a bigger trend with Indian tech start-ups like Meesho, Zepto, Pine Labs, PhonePe, and Billionbrains Garage Ventures (Groww) opting for domestic listings. Notably, over $7 billion has been raised through Indian IPOs this year alone. This is an addition to last year's record of nearly $21 billion in funds raised via the same route.
Company background
InMobi moving headquarters back to India
Founded in 2007 in Mumbai, InMobi became a unicorn in 2011 after SoftBank's investment. The company runs global mobile ads and owns a major stake in Glance, an AI-powered lock-screen platform. To prepare for its listing, InMobi is moving its headquarters from Singapore to India and plans to file draft documents soon. Meanwhile, Glance is also looking at a new $200 million funding round for further growth.