Robin Raina

The issue proceeds will be utilised to the tune of Rs 1,035.03 crore for working capital requirements of its subsidiaries, Rs 2,747.57 crore for purchase of outstanding convertible debentures from its subsidiaries and funding strategic acquisitions and investments besides general corporate proposes.

Noida-based EbixCash has filed its DRHP (draft red herring prospectus) with market regulator Sebi to raise Rs 6,000 crore via an initial public offering (IPO).

EbixCash is a technology enabled provider of digital products and services with a leadership position in the B2C, B2B and financial technology arena through its integrated business model.

The proposed IPO comprises equity shares of face value of Re 1 each which is a complete fresh issue of shares and the entire proceeds will go to the company. The offer also includes a reservation for subscription by eligible employees.

Additionally, the company, in consultation with the lead bankers, may consider a further issue of equity shares including a rights issue aggregating up to Rs 1,200 crore. If such placement is completed, the fresh issue size will be reduced, the company said.

The issue proceeds, as per the DRHP, will be utilised to the tune of Rs 1,035.03 crore for working capital requirements of its subsidiaries, Rs 2,747.57 crore for purchase of outstanding convertible debentures from its subsidiaries and funding strategic acquisitions and investments besides general corporate proposes.

Sources have revealed that the IPO is likely to see Ebix cash diluting 16 per cent at Rs 37,500 crore valuation.

EbixCash is a market leader in international remittance based on Gross Transaction Value (GTV) and foreign exchange, besides having a considerable yet increasing exposure to digital payments, domestic money remittances, pre-paid cards, travel, insurance, and corporate & incentive solutions. It has four primary business segments, payment solutions, travel, financial technologies and business processing outsourcing (“BPO”) services and start-up initiatives.

The Noida-based company utilizes “phygital” strategy that combines over 650,000 physical agent distribution outlets for payment solutions, remittance, travel and insurance products throughout India and Southeast Asia to an Omni-channel online digital platform.

The company provides a variety of products in India and in over 75 international jurisdictions, which includes front-end focused domestic and international money remittance, foreign exchange (“Forex”), pre-paid gift cards, utility payments, Aadhaar Enabled Payment Services (“AEPS”) services, PoS services, ticketing services; and back-end focused SaaS and self-hosted solutions for the financial sector including lending and wealth management operations, bus exchange technology, insurance and healthcare technology.

The Fintech firm by converging various mediums for Payment Solutions, Forex, Domestic and International Remittance, Travel, Financial Technologies, Insurance, BPO services, and healthcare in India and some international locations, the company aims to be an end-to-end platform for all customers and a “back-end” platform for corporate participants.

In October 2020, it acquired AssureEdge Global Services Private Limited rebranded as EbixCash Global BPO services, which had 800 employees at the time of acquisition and today it has more than 2850 employees, with an addition of 21 clients and converting it into a profitable business.

EbixCash clocked a profit of Rs 230.05 crore in the financial year FY21 against Rs 243.34 in the previous year, an impact due to Covid-19, whereas revenue during the year FY21 increased 91.36% to Rs 4,152.53 crore from Rs 2,170.02 crore in the previous year, primarily due to growth in its forex, remittances and payments business segments.

EbixCash was the most profitable in revenues, followed by One97 Communications and MakeMyTrip, when compared with competitors in FY21. The increase in EbixCash’s revenues which was hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic, is mostly due to a shift in product focus, with the company focusing more on the prepaid cards segment.

Profit for the six-month period ended September 2021 stood at Rs 191.10 crore on revenue of Rs 2,653.42 crore against Rs 1,140.83 crore on the back of rise in payment solutions and financial technology business segment, which accounts for 77.73% and 19.46% respectively.

Profitability has always been a priority for the company, and in order to attain and sustain it, a strategic approach to centralising cost centres and backward integrating all of its business segments has been implemented.

The board of EbixCash has veterans which include GuruPrasad Tiruvanamalai Chandrashekaran, Bhupesh Tambe, Dhawal Kamath, Sumit Khadria, Aruna Savant and Naveen Kundu.

Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors, Equirus Capital, ICICI Securities, SBI Capital Markets and Yes Securities (India) are the book running lead managers for the issue, while Link Intime is the registrar.