Japanese investor SoftBank Group Corp., holding nearly a 30% stake in Unicommerce eSolutions Pvt. Ltd., has been classified as a promoter in the company’s IPO filing. Alongside SoftBank, Snapdeal cofounders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal have also been tagged as promoters in an addendum to the draft IPO prospectus submitted to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). Previously, only AceVector Ltd., the parent company of Snapdeal, was identified as the promoter.
To protect itself from any liabilities associated with being a promoter, SoftBank entered into an indemnity agreement with Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal on May 17, prior to the board’s decision on May 29. This agreement ensures that SoftBank and its executives are indemnified against any claims or losses arising from its responsibilities as a promoter.
Unicommerce, which initially filed for an IPO in January, plans to sell shares worth approximately Rs 480-490 crore without issuing fresh capital. Under Indian regulations, a shareholder with a stake of 26% or more is termed a promoter, imposing restrictions on the sale of shares post-IPO.
The classification of SoftBank, Bahl, and Bansal as promoters aligns with SEBI’s increased scrutiny on promoter groups of IPO-bound companies. This scrutiny has led to reclassifications in other companies as well, where individuals and corporate entities with significant stakes are designated as promoters.
SoftBank’s entity, Starfish I Pte. Ltd., holds the largest share in AceVector, and through SB Investment Holdings (UK) Limited, it directly holds a 29.23% stake in Unicommerce. SoftBank plans to sell half of its stake in the IPO, reducing its holding to about 14.61%.
Unicommerce is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform that provides end-to-end management solutions for e-commerce operations. The company’s inclusion of additional promoters and the indemnity agreement with SoftBank highlight the complexities and regulatory considerations involved in preparing for an IPO under SEBI’s oversight.
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