Pine Labs files for IPO; to raise up to Rs 2,600 crore through fresh issue of shares

MUMBAI: Fintech unicorn Pine Labs filed draft IPO papers with markets regulator SEBI on Thursday, seeking to raise up to Rs 2,600 crore through fresh issue of shares. A clutch of the startup’s existing investors including Peak XV Partners, PayPal and Mastercard will collectively sell up to 14.8 crore shares in the IPO.Noida-based Pine Labs is among a batch of startups that are gearing up to go public in the coming quarters. An expanding local startup ecosystem and investors’ growing appetite for new-age companies have nudged many firms in the space to get listed on the bourses and tap public markets. Groww, PhysicsWallah, Shiprocket, PhonePe, Lenskart and Urban Company are among startups that are eyeing an IPO in this financial year.Pine Labs said that it may consider a pre-IPO placement of shares worth up to Rs 520 crore. The company will use portions of the IPO proceeds to invest in its subsidiaries and expand its presence outside India. Funds will also be allotted to invest in IT assets and boost cloud infrastructure. The startups which competes with players such as Paytm and Razorpay was last valued at about $5 billion when it had raised $150 million in funding led by Alpha Wave in 2022.The recent recovery of the markets following a volatile few sessions has opened up a window for startups to file for IPO, many of whom have been revisiting their initial issue sizes and valuations. The sensex on Thursday was less than 3% off its all-time peak at 85,978 points.