Oyo, the once high-flying Indian budget hotel chain, has withdrawn its IPO application from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for the second time, in a further blow to its already diminished ambitions. .
The Gurugram-based startup, which at its peak reached a valuation of $10 billion, canceled its IPO plans on May 17, according to a divulgation on the regulator's website. Oyo had initially filed paperwork with SEBI in 2021 for a public listing, but withdrew it and resubmitted it in 2023.
SEBI is yet to approve any of Oyo's applications, raising questions about the startup's readiness to face public scrutiny. Oyo has been struggling to secure a new funding round at a valuation of $3 billion or less, TechCrunch reported earlier this month. Oyo had denied that it was raising capital at that valuation.
However, the company is now trying to raise money at a valuation as low as $2 billion to $2.3 billion, a source familiar with the matter told TechCrunch. It has raised more than $3 billion in equity and debt to date.
Oyo, backed by SoftBank, Peak XV, Lightspeed, Airbnb and Microsoft, was once hailed as a disruptor in the budget hotel industry. But in recent years, the startup has technology/oyo-softbank-india.html” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>been criticized for its business practices, and in 2020 even laid off thousands of employees to cut costs.
