Lenskart to skip confidential route, file DRHP publicly by first fortnight of July

Peyush Bansal, cofounder and CEO, LensKart

Omnichannel eyewear maker Lenskart will likely skip the confidential filing route, offered by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), and instead file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) through the normal route, sources told Moneycontrol.

Lenskart’s approach is interesting as it is unlike what other new-age peers, such as Swiggy, Groww, Boat, PhyiscsWallah, Meesho and more, have followed or are planning to: confidential filing of IPO papers.

Under the confidential route, details about the company are not made public right away. In contrast, the normal route makes the entire draft IPO document (DRHP) publicly available as soon as it's filed with SEBI. The confidential route helps protect sensitive business information and gives companies more flexibility in timing their IPO.

Bansal’s increased conviction around financials, operating metrics and more comes largely because Lenskart is a dominant player in the space. Its closest listed rival is Titan Eye Plus, which is at a smaller scale, and Lenskart has no direct rival in the new economy sector, which explains why the company is opting to file its draft IPO papers under the normal route.

Bansal is also riding on the popularity of Lenskart, and his personal brand, built by appearing as a judge on the Indian edition of the show Shark Tank.

Lenskart and Bansal did not reply to Moneycontrol’s request for comments.

Lenskart, which is aiming for a DRHP in the first fortnight of July, is preparing for a mega $1 billion IPO at a valuation of $10 billion.

The company, which is slated to go public later this year, has also picked Kotak, Axis Capital, Citi, Morgan Stanley and Avendus as its bankers who will help the company raise over $1 billion.

While the company was earlier eyeing a valuation of $7-8 billion, it is now confident to IPO at a valuation of $10 billion, double of what it commanded during its previous private market fundraise, on the back of a strong profit profile.

While Lenskart had been profitable in the past, it has been incurring a loss in recent years as it expands operations. In FY24, the company recorded a loss of Rs 10 crore on the back of Rs 5,427-crore revenues, filings showed.

The company is yet to file its FY25 results.

Founded by Peyush and Neha Bansal, Amit Chaudhary, Ramneek Khurana and Sumeet Kapahi, Lenskart sells prescription glasses, sunglasses, and other eyewear accessories across India, the UAE, Singapore, and Japan has raised over $1 billion from ADIA, ChrysCap, SoftBank, Alpha Wave and several others.