Fintech firm Pine Labs has trimmed the size of its upcoming initial public offering (IPO), cutting both the fresh issue and the offer-for-sale (OFS) components, as the company no longer sees the need to raise equity to repay debt.
Pine Labs CEO Amrish Rau said the decision was guided by stronger earnings in recent quarters and a focus on building long-term investor goodwill.
"You would see that we have reduced the primary from Rs 2,600 crore, and that has largely come out of one component, which is reduction in the debt repayment amount,” Rau said during the pre-IPO media briefing.
“Over the last two quarters, there has been a trend. As far as our financials are concerned, our EBITDA performance continues to increase. So, we just did not see the pressure for us to try and reduce debt for diluting equity, and hence we decided to reduce the primary component also.”
According to the latest filing, the fresh issue has been reduced to Rs 2,080 crore from Rs 2,600 crore, while the OFS now stands at about 8.23 crore shares, down from 14.78 crore proposed earlier.
Rau said several existing shareholders have chosen to stay invested rather than sell down their holdings in the IPO. “Some of the selling investors basically said that, look, I totally respect what the company wants to do, but at the same time, I’m happy to reduce the OFS size because I’m ready to hold on for some more,” the CEO added.
Read More: Pine Labs sets IPO band 26% below grey market peak; promoters, investors reap multibagger gains
Pricing the IPO
Pine Labs CEO said the management opted against aggressive valuations, preferring to prioritise broader investor participation and longer-term confidence over short-term pricing gains.
“We were very clear that we want to continue to garner goodwill, and get everybody's support when we go out with this pricing,” the CEO said. “We believe we will be able to maintain that, because at the end of the day, it takes a village to come together to create a successful IPO.”
He added that the company wanted to take investors along rather than “walk lonely” in pursuit of a higher valuation. “We priced ourselves in such a way where we believe the village will come in and support us, and that is very important to us in the journey,” Rau said.
On whether the offer was priced too low, Rau said the management was comfortable with the band and that the market would eventually determine the company’s true worth post-listing. “Eventually, once we go into public markets, how we perform, how we create our results and what we show to the market, only on that basis will the true value be discovered once we get listed,” he said.
The IPO price band has been set between Rs 210 and Rs 221 per share, nearly 26 percent below the peak levels seen in the unlisted grey market earlier this year.
Profitability ‘Sustainable’
Rau said Pine Labs has maintained profitability on an adjusted EBITDA basis for the last five years, with operating margins improving as the business scaled.
The company’s adjusted EBITDA rose to Rs 356.7 crore in FY25, up from Rs 158.2 crore in FY24, as per the red herring prospectus. The adjusted EBITDA margins are now approaching 20 percent compared to single digits a few years ago.
Rau acknowledged that Line Labs’ reported profit after tax (PAT) continues to be affected by employee stock option (ESOP) expenses and accounting changes linked to its transition to public-market reporting. Pine Labs has realigned its ESOP policy to issue options closer to fair market value, rather than at steep discounts, the CEO said.
The company had reported a net loss of Rs 145.5 crore in FY25, narrowing from Rs 341.9 crore in FY24. The CEO added that the profitability is improving, and the company achieved a small net profit in the first quarter of FY26 though that is based on management estimates, and not yet audited.
Founded in 1998, Pine Labs provides merchant payment and fintech infrastructure solutions to banks, retailers and brands, serving more than 1.8 million merchant touchpoints across India and operating in about 20 countries, including Malaysia, Singapore, the UAE, and several African markets.
The company’s listing is set to open on November 7, 2025.
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