Also in the letter:
■ Earnings corner: MobiKwik, Bluestone
■ Amazon joins OpenAI’s circle
■ Billionaires at 22!
Lenskart IPO subscribed nearly 30 times on final day of bidding
Peyush Bansal, CEO, Lenskart
India’s largest eyewear retailer, Lenskart Solutions, drew strong investor interest, with its Rs 7,300 crore initial public offering (IPO) subscribed around 28 times on the final day of bidding.
The issue was fully subscribed on day one itself, with strong interest from both institutional and retail investors.
Details:
- Qualified institutional purchaseers (QIB) quota was subscribed 40.4 times.
- Non-institutional investors’ shares came in at 18.2 times.
- Retail allocation saw 7.5 times the subscription.
Meanwhile, the stock’s grey market premium dropped about 9% on opening day, currently standing at 18% over the Rs 402 issue price.
IPO details:
- Opening date: October 31
- Total offer size: Rs 7,300 crore
- Valuation: Rs 70,000 crore
- Listing date: November 10
- Price band: Rs 382-402 per share
Addressing questions around a steep valuation at the ET Startup Awards on October 31, CEO Peyush Bansal stated: “Backlash means people care. As a consumer brand, we’ve received immense love, so criticism is part of the journey,” he stated.
Financials:
- FY25 net profit: Rs 297 crore (from a Rs 10 crore loss in FY24)
- Operating revenue: Rs 6,625 crore, up 22%
Also Read | Lenskart IPO: We required to win credibility with new set of investors as we go public: Peyush Bansal
Groww IPO day 1: Issue subscribed 57% on strong retail demand
(L-R) Harsh Jain, Lalit Keshre, Neeraj Singh and Ishan Bansal, founders, Groww
Wealth-tech platform Groww saw a steady start to its IPO, with 57% overall subscription by the conclude of day one. Investors, especially retail participants, rushed to bid for shares, indicating strong early demand.
Tell me more:
- Retail investors: Subscribed 1.91 times, bidding for 12.67 crore shares against 6.6 crore reserved.
- Non-institutional investors: Subscribed 59%, bidding for 5.91 crore shares versus 9.94 crore available.
- Qualified institutional purchaseers (QIBs): Subscribed 10%, bidding for 2 crore shares out of 19.89 crore on offer.
The IPO, which closes on November 7, is trading at a grey market premium of roughly 18%, a sign of bullish listing expectations.
Growwing debate: Groww’s IPO triggered a broader social media discussion about the path Indian startups take to go public. Much of the commentary played out on X, where founders and investors weighed in.
- Nithin Kamath’s view: Groww rival Zerodha’s founder stated that India’s tax system pushes startups to prioritise quick growth over profits, as lower capital gains taxes build scaling and exiting through IPOs more appealing than steady profitability.
- Counterview: Ixigo’s Aloke Bajpai stated founders, not VCs, choose to reinvest profits to drive growth and innovation, while Sinformaris Ventures’ Ritesh Banglani added that startups lose money early not due to tax reasons but becautilize they’re testing ideas, scaling, or investing for long-term value.
Also Read: Groww raises Rs 2,985 crore from investors ahead of IPO, sovereign funds, SBI MF join anchor book
Mobikwik Q2: Profit falls despite Ebitda jump
(L-R) Bipin Preet Singh, Upasana Taku, founders, Mobikwik
Digital payments firm One Mobikwik Systems posted a mixed set of numbers for Q2FY26, with operating profit (Ebitda) rising even as net profit (PAT) declined.
Financials:
- Revenue: Fell 7% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 270.21 crore from Rs 290.64 crore.
- Net loss: Ballooned to Rs 29 crore vs Rs 3.6 crore in Q2FY25.
Executive speak: “Our performance this quarter reflects the strength of our business fundamentals and focus on sustainable profitability,” stated Mobikwik CFO Upasana Taku, crediting cost optimisation and steady growth across payments and lconcludeing.
Bluestone narrows Q2 loss as revenue rises 37%
Gaurav Singh Kushwaha, CEO, Bluestone
Omnichannel jeweller Bluestone posted improved earnings for Q2, aided by festive demand and broader distribution.
Financials:
- Net loss: Narrowed 38.2% YoY to Rs 52.1 crore
- Operating revenue: Rose 37% YoY to Rs 513.6 crore
Quote, unquote: “September was mixed – demand softened early in the month with rising gold prices, but festive purchaseing stayed resilient,” the company noted.
OpenAI turns to Amazon in $38 billion cloud services deal after restructuring
Sam Altman, CEO, OpenAI
OpenAI has signed a seven-year, $38 billion agreement with Amazon to fuel its AI ambitions, following a recent restructuring that gave its for-profit arm greater control over spconcludeing and operations.
Deal details:
- OpenAI will access hundreds of thousands of Nvidia GPUs for training and deployment.
- Amazon Web Services (AWS) will launch supplying capacity immediately, with full rollout expected by conclude-2026 and expansion in 2027.
- Nvidia GB200 and GB300 chips will be utilized to power ChatGPT and future models.
The deal is a major win for AWS, reinforcing its position in the AI cloud race alongside Microsoft and Google. Notably, Amazon has invested $8 billion in OpenAI rival Anthropic in two rounds.
Potential IPO: The restructuring has brought OpenAI closer to functioning like a traditional tech firm. An IPO, potentially valuing at $1 trillion, is on the table. But the surge in AI spconcludeing, the circular nature of deal-creating, and sky-high valuations have also triggered concerns of a looming bubble.
Two Indian Americans beat Zuckerberg’s record as youngest self-created billionaire
(L-R) Adarsh Hiremath, Brconcludean Foody and Surya Midha, founders, Mercor
Two 22-year-old Indian-Americans Adarsh Hiremath and Surya Midha, along with their high school friconclude Brconcludean Foody have become the youngest ever self-created billionaires, pipping Mark Zuckerberg, who hit the mark at 23 in 2008.
Secret sauce: The trio cofounded a San Francisco-based Mercor, an AI hiring platform that just raised $350 million at a $10 billion valuation. Each founder owns a 22% stake, valuing their individual holdings at around $2 billion.
The latest round, led by Felicis Ventures, comes just months after Mercor’s previous fundraise — marking a fivefold jump in valuation.
About the company: Founded in 2023, Mercor launched as an AI hiring tool. It now connects companies with domain experts — scientists, doctors, and layers — to support train foundational AI models. The platform currently hosts more than 30,000 experts.
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