Assetz Group eyes IPO within a year: CEO Akshay Dewani

Assetz Group eyes IPO within a year: CEO Akshay Dewani

Bengaluru-based Assetz Property Group is gearing up to launch its Initial Public Offering (IPO) within the next one year, Chief Executive Officer Akshay Dewani told Moneycontrol. He said the company was “IPO ready” and it should go public within a year.

Over the past five to six years, Assetz has delivered a 35 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR). In the most recent quarter, the company recorded Rs 1,000 crore in pre-sales, setting its sights on Rs 4,200 crore for the full year.

Dewani noted that the developer is on track to nearly double last year’s performance. “This year, we are targeting around Rs 4,200 crore of pre-sales, with an inventory of close to Rs 7,000–7,500 crore,” he said.

Assetz has also managed to capture a notable slice of the city’s market. “In the last quarter, when we looked at the Bengaluru numbers, I think we almost took 4 percent of the market share in terms of sales,” Dewani said.

Backed by a 30-million square feet land bank valued at around Rs 30,000–35,000 crore, Assetz has built a strong presence in mid-to-premium housing, catering largely to the Rs 1.5–3 crore segment. The company recently acquired 200 acres to expand in Bengaluru’s high-demand eastern and northern corridors.

“As much as 80 percent of our product sits between Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 3 crore. That is almost 65 to 70 percent of the Bengaluru market,” Dewani said.

He added that the company’s design and efficiency standards have helped it stand apart. “When you go to any other competitor's project, you will see the carpet area efficiencies are 69 percent. We are at 73 percent, which helps us create a niche in the market.”

Looking ahead, Assetz is working on expanding into new cities while retaining its base in Bengaluru. “Bengaluru is obviously the key focus in terms of growth. But we are now selectively starting to look at other markets as well. And I think it will be at least a two to three-year journey before we will be present in any new market,” Dewani said, adding that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Hyderabad, and Pune are under consideration.

On its five-year vision, the Chief Executive Officer said, “We would want to be either the first or the second in Bengaluru, for sure. We also want to be present in two more cities other than Bengaluru in the next five years and then consolidate in those cities over the following five years.”

The company is also investing in technology and sustainability to strengthen its positioning. “In two years, we want to be Artificial Intelligence (AI) transformed. In marketing, we’ve already started implementation. In Human Resources (HR), we have started. In construction, we have started doing updates through drones,” Dewani said.