SaaS Startup Unicommerce Files RHP with SEBI, IPO on Aug 6

E-commerce software platform Unicommerce has submitted its red herring prospectus (RHP) and is scheduled to go public on August 6. This makes it the third SoftBank-backed business to do so, following FirstCry and Ola Electric, to do so in the first week of August.

The company’s subscription period will begin on August 6 and end on August 8. On August 13, Unicommerce shares will go live on the markets.

The original proposal to dispose 29.8 million shares was shortened by the OFS. A portion of it will be sold by promoter AceVector Group (previously Snapdeal) and SoftBank.

The Security Exchange Board of India (SEBI), the market regulator, approved Unicommerce’s DRHP earlier this month after it was submitted in January of this year. The business intended to sell up to 2,98,40,486 equity shares in an offer for sale (OFS) in order to raise money. For the intended IPO, the company won’t be issuing any new securities.

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As of currently, AceVector owns 38.2% of the company, B2 Capital owns about 10%, and SoftBank owns 29.2%.

Participating in the OFS will be AceVector Limited (formerly known as Snapdeal Limited) and SB Investment Holdings (UK) Limited. SB Investment will sell up to 16,170,240 equity shares with a face value of Re 1 apiece, while AceVector will only sell up to 9,438,272 equity shares.

Importantly, neither Kunal Bahl nor Rohit Bansal, the co-founders of AceVector, will be selling any OFS shares. The founders and promoters of this IPO are presumably the only ones in the internet industry who aren’t selling any shares.

AceVector Limited is the largest shareholder in Unicommerce with 34.91%, followed by B2 Capital Partners and SoftBank with 29.09% and 9.91%, respectively. Significant ownership holdings in the business are also held by Anchorage Capital (7.73%), Dilip Vellodi (3.44%), and Madhuri Madhusudan Kela (1.65%).

In December, Unicommerce added three new independent directors to its board: Sheroes founder Sairee Chahal, veteran of the FMCG industry Ullas Kamath, and former CEO of SoftBank India Manoj Kohli.

Additionally, Bahl and Bansal were named non-executive directors. Additionally, Bahl and Bansal cofounded AceVector Group, which is currently home to Unicommerce, Stellaro Brands, and Snapdeal. 2015 saw Snapdeal purchase Unicommerce. It sold SoftBank a 30% share of the company in 2021.

News sites revealed in June that in an addition to its draft IPO prospectus, Unicommerce named Bahl, Bansal, and Japanese investor SoftBank as its promoters.

Additionally, SoftBank and Bahl and Bansal inked an indemnification agreement to shield the company and its management from any liabilities resulting from their status as Unicommerce promoters.

The company’s prospectus states that a number of investors acquired shares in Unicommerce in December, including Madhuri Madhusudan Kela, an investor in the stock market, Anchorage Capital Fund, and the founders of CitiusTech, Rizwan Koita and Jagdish Moorjani.

In comparison to Rs 90 crore in FY23, Unicommerce recorded Rs 103.5 crore in operating revenue for the fiscal year (FY24) that ended in March 2024. From Rs 6.4 crore in the previous fiscal year to Rs 13 crore in FY24, the company’s profits more than doubled.