BharatPe may go public in next 18 to 24 months, says Chairman Rajnish Kumar

Rajnish Kumar, Chairman, BharatPe

Veteran banker and current chairman of BharatPe Rajnish Kumar said on September 20 that the company could go public in another 18 to 24 months.

Speaking about attracting investors, Kumar told CNBC-TV18 that there should be a few quarters of profitability for investors to get confidence that the company has a plan, it is working towards the same, and that there is potential for growth and profit.

He said: “There should be a consistent record of a few quarters as far as growth and profit are concerns for investors to gain confidence”, and added: “We would like to go to the markets with that confidence -- 18 to 24 months is the time period by which we can aim to list BharatPe.”

Explaining why 18 to 24 months would be needed to list the company, the BharatPe chairman said: “Right now there is a little bit of a strategic shift underway at BharatPe.”

He further said that though growth is under focus at the moment, the “focus is more on earning profits and improving the bottom line”.

Kumar added: “In the last several months, the company has worked on its strategy to make it profitable. Our cash burn, which used to be $11 million per month is now down to a little above $2 million – this is a big improvement and within the next two months or at best in three months, we will be EBITDA positive.”

Showing confidence in the company’s prospects, the chairman closed the conversation by saying: “There is absolutely no doubt that BharatPe will be profitable and pursuing high growth opportunities which are available in the Indian market.”