Indian eyewear retailer Lenskart has raised $200 million from US financial services major Fidelity Management and Research Company and the Singapore government’s sovereign fund, Temasek. This is as per the financial advisor to the deal, Avendus.
With this investment, Temasek doubled down on its existing investment in Lenskart. Additionally, Fidelity Management & Research Company joined the table. In the deal, Lenskart was valued at $5 billion, which is higher than its last value of $4.5 billion.
In its last round of funding in May 2023, Lenskart was valued at $4.5 billion. The company raised new funds from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and ChrysCapital. The investment was made with the help of the purchase of primary and secondary shares.
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Lenskart attracted around $1 billion in capital over the last eighteen months, as per Avendus. Currently, Lenskart has more than 2,500 stores, of which 2,000 are based in India.
Neeraj Shrimali, Managing Director and Co-Head, Digital and Technology Investment Banking, Avendus Capital, said, “This investment by renowned global investors underscores the uniqueness of Lenskart’s disruptive model and highlights the excitement surrounding one of the most anticipated IPOs in India in the coming years... In our view, more late-stage tech companies will continue to garner strong investor interest, demonstrating the robustness and excitement of the Indian consumer tech landscape.”
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Interestingly, as per the Economic Times, this is one of the largest secondary share sales this year. A secondary share sale occurs when an existing shareholder sells their shares in a private firm to a third party, like another investor. This is also referred to as a secondary stock transaction, or "secondaries." Backed by investors including SoftBank and Alpha Wave Global, Lenskart offers eyeglasses, sunglasses, contact lenses, and other accessories.
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