PG Esmeralda, Warburg Pincus-backed Ecom Express files draft papers for IPO with SEBI

Ecom Express Ltd has filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the capital market regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), for an initial public offering (IPO).

As of the Financial Year 2024, the firm is the sole pure-play supplier of B2C e-commerce logistics solutions in India, according to a RedSeer report. It runs a pan-Indian express logistics network that handles reverse logistics (returns), fulfilment services (warehousing), first-mile pickup, mid-mile transportation, and last-mile delivery.

With a face value of Re 1, the IPO consists of a fresh issue of equity shares up to ₹1,284.5 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) by Promoter Selling Shareholders of equity shares aggregating up to ₹1315.5 crore. The total issue size sums up to ₹2,600 crore.

Promoters Details 

In the OFS the promoter selling shareholders are Kotla Satyanarayana, Manju Dhawan, Kotla Sridevi, Kotla Rathnanjali, Eaglebay Investment Ltd, and PG Esmeralda Pte Ltd.

As of August 15, 2024, the date of the DRHP, the promoters collectively owned 32,871,620 equity shares, or 63.44% of the company's issued, subscribed, and paid-up equity share capital, and 10,536,409 preference shares, or 99.18% of the company's issued, subscribed, and paid-up preference share capital.

Eaglebay Investment Ltd holds 27.13% stake in the company. Eaglebay does not currently have a promoter, according to the DRHP. Certain private equity firms that are overseen by Warburg Pincus LLC, a limited liability corporation with its headquarters in New York and a member of the Warburg Pincus network, directly control it.

The company has a 10.03% stake held by British International Investment plc, formerly known as CDC Group plc, while the promoter PG Esmeralda Pte. Ltd holds a 49.76% stake.

The book running lead managers of the issue are Axis Capital Ltd, IIFL Securities Ltd, Kotak Mahindra Capital Company Ltd, and UBS Securities India Private Ltd.

The company has developed logistical solutions for each of these e-commerce categories as they have changed over time, taking into account developments in the e-commerce sector. Since their integration in 2013, this has allowed us to handle over 2 billion shipments. In addition, during the Financial Years 2020 and 2024, the number of shipments they handled annually increased at a compound annual growth rate of 33.46%.

Meesho, Amazon, Nykaa, Puma, Purplle, E-Kart, and V Mart are a few of the company's clients. The firm had 6,384 active clients as of March 31, 2024.

According to the RedSeer Report, as of March 31, 2024, the company has the most coverage of PIN codes covered among our rivals in Tier 2+ areas.

The company's listed peers are Blue Dart Express Ltd (with a P/E of 64.45), and Delhivery Ltd.

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