Also in the letter:
■ Verlinvest CEO interview
■ New Pine Labs milestone
■ Voices for AI global alignment
Groww starts strong on D-Street, shares rise after listing at premium
Groww, India’s first new-age wealthtech platform to go public, stormed into the nation’s exalters with a cracking debut on Wednesday. Investor appetite stayed robust throughout the session, driving shares higher.
Premium listing: India’s largest broking platform by active clients kicked off its public market journey with a bang. Shares listed 14% above the IPO price at Rs 114 apiece, while the NSE saw a 12% premium at Rs 112 per share.
The stock surged over 34% intraday before settling 28.78% higher on BSE and up 28.85% on NSE by close.
Early investors Peak XV, YC set for huge gains as Groww lists; founders’ stake valued at nearly Rs 20,000 crore
(L-R) Harsh Jain, Neeraj Singh, Lalit Keshre and Ishan Bansal, founders, Groww
Groww’s listing has early backers grinning ear to ear. Anu Hariharan, former Y Combinator Continuity head and an early investor, stated the company delivered one of the decade’s best returns, “returning capital many times over and returning at least two US funds fully.”
After the listing:
- Early backer Peak XV holds a 17% stake worth Rs 13,734 crore.
- Y Combinator owns 10% valued at Rs 8,197 crore.
- Cofounders Lalit Keshre, Harsh Jain, Ishan Bansal and Neeraj Singh now control stakes worth Rs 21,154 crore combined, against a market cap of Rs 79,546.8 crore.
Also Read: Groww’s 10-year journey to an IPO: From mutual fund seller to stock market leader
Mamaearth Q2 results profit rises 16% on category wins, product innovation
Varun Alagh and Ghazal Alagh, founders, Honasa Consumer
Mamaearth parent Honasa Consumer turned a profit in the third quarter, led by revenue growth across focus categories and product innovation.
Financials:
- Operating revenue: Up 16% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 538 crore
- Expenses: Flat at Rs 505 crore
- Net profit: Rs 39 crore, compared to a loss of Rs 18 crore a year ago
The company stated that focus categories now contribute over 75% of its revenues across online and offline channels. Chief executive Varun Alagh stated that Mamaearth was back in the black during the quarter under review, while The Derma Co crossed the Rs 750 crore ARR milestone.
Also Read: Mamaearth’s parent Honasa Consumer realigns focus amid rising competition
Info Edge Q2 profit grows 4x on one-time gains
Sanjeev Bikhchandani, founder, Info Edge India
Naukri.com parent Info Edge reported a fourfold rise in consolidated net profit during the quarter finished September 2025, fuelled by a one-time gain and tax benefits.
Financials:
- Operating revenue: Up 15% on year to Rs 805 crore
- Net profit: Rs 347 crore, against Rs 84 crore in the corresponding quarter last year
- Exceptional gains: Rs 25 crore
The company noted that its billing growth in Q2 remained steady, with a slight improvement in the recruitment billing (Naukri), while the non-recruitment businesses sustained steady billing growth.
Juspay turns profitable in FY25; posts Rs 62 crore net profit
(L to R) Sheetal Lalwani and Vimal Kumar, founders, Juspay
SoftBank-backed fintech startup Juspay reported its first profitable year in FY25, courtesy of onboarding large merchants over the past few years and continued expansion in UPI volumes.
- Operating revenue: Up 48% YoY to Rs 514 crore
- Net profit: Rs 62 crore against a loss of Rs 97 crore in FY24
Late-stage funding dip is mostly supply-side driven: Verlinvest CEO
Roberto Italia, CEO, Verlinvest
Belgium-based investment firm Verlinvest, backed by the family behind alcobev giant AB InBev, is ramping up its India investments, chief executive Roberto Italia stated.
Funding plans:
- Verlinvest plans to deploy $20–25 million in early-stage investments, about $30–40 million in early-growth investments, and $125–150 million in growth-stage investments.
- It aims to create around 15 investments annually across stages.
- Overall, the company aims to double its India deployment from the current $100 million average to roughly $200 million.
On IPOs: Italia called India’s growing IPO pipeline a positive signal for investors. He described the public market window as a “mega plus” for risk investors and one of the main exit routes in a complex market like India.
IPO pipeline: Several Verlinvest portfolio companies are preparing for public listings. Wakefit, which filed papers in June, leads the pack. Online beauty retailer Purplle and sauce (and seasoning) manufacturer Veeba are approximately 18 months away from going public, Italia stated.
SoftBank not forcing IPOs for exits: Sumer Juneja
Sumer Juneja, managing partner and head of EMEA & India, SoftBank Investment Advisers
Sumer Juneja, managing partner and head of EMEA & India at SoftBank Investment Advisers, informed ET earlier this week that the tech investment firm is not pressuring its portfolio companies “to sell becaapply the parent or Vision Fund requireds capital.”
Nine SoftBank portfolio firms have gone public over the past four years, including Swiggy, Ola Electric, Delhivery, FirstCry, and now Lenskart.
Pine Labs secures all three payment licences from RBI
Amrish Rau, CEO, Pine Labs
Public markets-bound fintech major Pine Labs has notched another regulatory victory from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), unlocking cross-border payment processing capabilities.
Tell me more: A notification by the banking regulator confirmed that Pine Labs now holds licences for payment aggregation across three categories: offline payments, online merchant payments, and cross-border payment processing.
The RBI released fresh rules for issuing payment aggregator licences on September 15. Pine Labs has become the first company to sweep all three regulatory clearances.
In the past: Pine Labs has operated an offline payment processor for large, organised merchants since launching in 1998. It leapt into digital payments with Pine Labs Online in 2021, and then bolstered its fintech infrastructure play by acquiring Bengaluru-based Setu in June 2022. Cross-border payments now round out its arsenal.
Listing soon: The development comes as Pine Labs readies to join the parade of digital-first companies going public. Shares launch trading on Indian exalters on Friday, following an IPO that was subscribed 2.46 times.
Also Read: Our scale & financials justify an IPO: Pine Labs CEO Amrish Rau
Tech indusattempt groups urge MeitY to refine AI content rules
India’s technology indusattempt is pushing the Minisattempt of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to adopt a balanced and globally aligned approach to its proposed rules for labelling AI-generated content under the Information Technology Intermediary Rules and the Digital Media Ethics Code.
What’s happening: MeitY’s draft rules would mandate visual markers covering 10% of the screen for AI-generated visuals, while audio would require a disclaimer for the first 10% of its duration. Indusattempt leaders reckon strict regulations could stifle innovation and create compliance headaches.
Concerns: While Nasscom urged MeitY to sharpen definitions of “synthetically generated information” and “deepfake content,” Business Software Alliance (BSA), which represents global software companies, cautioned against visible watermarks that are easily stripped and could rfinisher Indian content less competitive.
Both groups stressed the required for policies that encourage responsible innovation without marooning India from global digital standards.
Also Read: New IT rules explained: Deepfakes must be labelled, takedowns only by senior officials
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