Two prominent members of PB Fintech, the company that runs the well-known online insurance aggregator Policybazaar and credit comparison website Paisabazaar, have sold a combined 1.8% share in the business, marking a significant development for the Indian fintech industry.
This massive Rs 1,109 crore deal was carried out through open market operations. The sale emphasises how dynamic the fintech industry is and how important firms in this space are changing their tactics.
The National Stock Exchange (NSE) has released block deal data that reveals Yashish Dahiya, the CEO and co-founder of PB Fintech, contributed 54 lakh equity shares, or 1.2% of the company.
Simultaneously, vice-chairman and co-founder Alok Bansal sold 29.70 lakh shares, or 0.65% of the company. A total of Rs 1,109.23 crore was transacted for these shares, with an average price of Rs 1,325.15 per share.
Dahiya will own 4.83 percent of PB Fintech after these trades, and Bansal will own 1.63% of the company after fully diluted. Both founders, according to the company, are still steadfastly dedicated to its continued development and prosperity. It was further stated that a sizeable amount of the sale’s revenues will go towards paying taxes related to both past and present Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) exercises.
Numerous investors showed a great deal of interest in the shares that Dahiya and Bansal sold. Prominent overseas investors as well as domestic mutual funds and insurance organisations were among the buyers.
These included foreign companies like Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, BNP Paribas Arbitrage, and Goldman Sachs Singapore, as well as domestic companies like HDFC Mutual Fund, Axis MF, HDFC Standard Life Insurance, and ICICI Prudential Life Insurance.
The IMF, Capital Group, Marshall Wace Investment, a hedge fund located in London, Ghisallo Master Fund LP, Morgan Stanley Asia Singapore, and Societe Generale were among the other buyers.
This strategic disposal is part of the co-founders of PB Fintech’s share sales pattern. Dahiya sold over 38 lakh shares for Rs 230 crore in June 2022. Similarly, Bansal sold more than 28 lakh shares for Rs 236 crore in February of the same year.
PB Fintech’s Rs 5,710-crore initial public offering (IPO) in November 2021, in which co-founders and other shareholders decreased their interests, several actions have taken place.
Shares of PB Fintech saw a minor decline despite these noteworthy transactions; after the sale was announced, they dropped 1.51 percent to settle at Rs 1,318 a share on the NSE.
The leadership of PB Fintech’s activities not only reflects their financial goals, but they also point to a larger trend of liquidity and realignment of investments within the fintech sector in India.
These platforms’ strategic moves are actively observed by industry experts and investors for clues about prospective development trajectories and evolving market dynamics, as they continue to serve substantial but unexplored online lending and insurance markets.