The deal has reportedly valued hospitality tech player Oyo Hotels & Rooms at $9 billion and gives Microsoft the option to increase its stake in the former at a later stage.
- Microsoft signed deal to buy a small stake in Oyo Hotels & Homes with an option to increase ownership later
- Oyo looking for more investors ahead of its IPO
- Oyo will use new funds to ramp up its tech and increase market share
Tech giant Microsoft has finalised a deal for strategic investment for an undisclosed amount in Ritesh Agarwal-led Oyo Hotels & Homes giving valuing the company at $9 billion. The SoftBank-backed company could be looking at more such deals ahead of its Initial Public Offer (IPO), according to a report in Economic Times.
Microsoft will buy a small stake in the hotel room aggregator but has an option to raise its ownership later, the report added. The latest development follows another fundraise to the tune of $660 million in term loan B (TLB) funding by Oyo from global institutional investors which was oversubscribed 1.7 times.
TLB refers to a tranche of senior secured syndicated credit facility from global institutional investors, it said in a statement. Oyo is the first Indian startup to be publicly rated by Moody’s and Fitch, two of the leading international rating agencies.
Commenting on the fundraise, Oyo Group Chief Financial Officer Abhishek Gupta said: “We are delighted by the response to Oyo’s maiden TLB capital raise that was oversubscribed by leading global institutional investors. We are thankful for the trust that they have placed in Oyo’s mission of creating value for owners and operators of hotels … This is a testament to the strength and success of Oyo’s products at scale, our strong fundamentals and our high-value potential.”
The hospitality company has SoftBank Vision Fund, Sequoia Capital, Lightspeed Ventures, Airbnb and Hero Enterprises as investors.
Oyo is reportedly likely to use the funding to ramp up its technology and increase its footprint in the hospitality market with more market share even as the industry grapples with the blow dealt by the Covid-19 pandemic marking an end for many competitors.
Earlier this year HT Media Ventures invested $7.31 million in Oyo in a series F1 funding round.
Microsoft had earlier expressed interest in making strategic investments in technology disruptors from emerging markets such as India.
https://www.timesnownews.com/business-economy/companies/article/microsoft-to-buy-stake-in-oyo-at-valuation-of-9-billion-deal-precursor-to-ipo/792315
