Policybazaar IPO | Insurance firm plans to file draft prospectus in May: Report

Policybazaar plans to raise about $500 million and could value at over $3.5 billion

SoftBank-backed insurance platform Policybazaar is gearing to go public before the end of this year. The firm is planning to file a draft prospectus next month for its initial public offering (IPO).

Policybazaar plans to raise about $500 million, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter.

The offering could value Policybazaar at over $3.5 billion and would involve new stocks and secondary shares from existing shareholders, sources told the publication.

Also Read | Decoding the origins of IPO-bound Policybazaar

Discussions are underway and finer details, including the size and timing of the IPO may still change, the report said.

Policybazaar and SoftBank representatives refused to comment on IPO plans, the report said.

Moneycontrol could not independently verify the report.

Policybazaar could be among the first of India’s startup to go public this year. Others include food delivery app Zomato and beauty care chain Nykaa.

Also Read | 15 IPOs to hit Dalal Street in April-June quarter; six likely in April

Earlier in March, Policybazaar raised $75 million in funding led by US-based Falcon Edge Capital. The company will deploy the capital to expand its services in the UAE and West Asia.

New investor Bay Capital backed PB Fintech, the holding company of PolicyBazaar, in a secondary transaction in March.

Founded in 2008, Gurgaon-based insurance aggregator turned into a unicorn after SoftBank led an over $200 million financing in the company in 2018.

Policybazaar offers a platform that allows customers to compare auto, health, life and personal insurance policies. The portal hosts more than 100 million visitors a year and sells 4,00,000 insurance policies each month, according to its website.