CarTrade IPO to open on Aug 9, to raise nearly Rs 2,999 cr: Check allotment dates & more

It is a busy time for investors as the online auto classified platform CarTrade Tech becomes the latest company to roll out an initial public offering (IPO). The company on Tuesday informed that it has fixed a price band of Rs 1,585-1,618 per share for its nearly Rs 2,999-crore offer. CarTrade IPO will open for subscription on August 9 and will close on August 11. 

CarTrade IPO to open next week

With the confirmation of the CarTrade share price, the multi-channel auto platform is now set for its initial share sale. The public issue will be of 1,85,32,216 equity shares that will completely be on offer for sale by existing selling shareholders. At the upper end of the price band, the offered size is expected to amount to Rs 2,998.51 crore. The bidding for the company’s anchor investors will open on August 6. As per the company’s red herring prospectus, CarTrade looks to enhance its visibility and brand image while providing liquidity to its shareholders with its initial listing. However, the company will not be directly receiving any proceeds from the offer as the returns will be handed to the selling shareholders, in proportion to the shares offered by them.

"We are creating an automotive digital ecosystem in India. We had 32 million unique visitors came to our platform in the January-March quarter, 80 per cent of them came organically (the company did not incur any marketing costs to get them)...which shows the brand affinity of the company and platforms," CarTrade Tech Ltd Chairman Managing Director and CEO Vinay Sanghi said in a virtual briefing.

Vinay Sanghi, while explaining his company’s status, informed that the company is more than just a platform for buyers and sellers of vehicles. According to the CEO, CarTrade is also a software company that has created interconnects between stakeholders like dealers, manufacturers, and banks. The company citing an industry report highlighted that there is a constant upward trend towards online auto portals and the market for the same in India was estimated at USD 14.3 billion in FY 2020. Sanghi claimed that CarTrade is up amongst the largest automotive data destinations in the country.

Responding to queries on the company’s take on future acquisitions, Sanghi said, "We are a profitable company...the cash and cash equivalents are pretty significant and we feel that is enough for all the investments or acquisitions we may do in the future. The way we look at acquisitions is that all these 30 million customers, the dealers or manufacturers on our platform, with an acquisition, we must be able to provide more to them. Our focus is really always-on customer experience, and if an acquisition adds to that customer experience, or gives our customers another product or another service, we would actively lookout."

About CarTrade

Founded in 2009, CarTrade is an auto aggregator backed by marquee investors like Warburg Pincus, Temasek, JP Morgan, and March Capital. The CarTrade offers a platform for customers to buy and sell used cars as well as new cars. The multi-channel auto platform has a wide presence across vehicle types and value-added services through its brands including CarWale, CarTrade, Shriram Automall, BikeWale, CarTradeExchange, Adroit Auto and AutoBiz. The company majorly generates its revenues from commission and fees from auctions and remarketing services, online advertising solutions, lead generation, technology-based services to original equipment manufacturers, dealers, banks, and other financial institutions, and inspection and valuation services.

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