The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, the UAE’s national wealth fund, has purchased a minority interest in Mobikwik, a digital payments startup slated for an IPO, for almost $20 million (about Rs 150 crore), valuing it at USD 700 million, according to the company. Following allegations of significant data theft in March, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) conducted a forensic examination on the Gurugram-based firm, which was founded in 2009. Hackers reportedly stole the personal information of roughly 10 million of its clients.
According to a Registrar of Companies (RoC) filing by Mobikwik, the current round of investment from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority valued the business at $700 million (almost Rs 5,193 crore). It has raised approximately Rs 235 crore since March 2021.
It recently recruited new shareholders, including ex-Blackstone India president Mathew Cyriac, Padma awardee Sat Pal Khattar, and ex-Infosys chief investment officer V G Dheeshjith, as part of these capital raising. Sequoia Capital and Bajaj Finance are among its other investors. Mobikwik is reportedly working on a Rs 1,200-crore primary share sale, which is expected to touch the markets by September, according to investment banking sources.
Digital wallet and payments start-up launched in early March. Mobikwik was in the midst of a crisis when hackers reportedly stole the personal information of 9.9 million of its clients. The Reserve Bank ordered it to perform a forensic audit, despite the fact that it rejected the charges. Mobikwik says that their network processes one million transactions each day, including digital wallets and services like mobile phone top-ups and utility bill payments. Its network includes over three million businesses and services over 107 million people.
According to a research released by PwC in December 2020, the country’s digital payments market may exceed Rs 163 lakh crore by the following fiscal year. Competition among digital payment companies like as Google Pay, Walmart’s PhonePe, and Paytm has intensified when Facebook’s WhatsApp was granted authorization to accept payments locally.
