SoftBank sells 1.65% of Meesho for $226M as it trims India bets
What's the deal? SoftBankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has sold a 1.65% stake in Bengaluru e-commerce platform Meesho for US$256M through a block deal on Friday. Its affiliate SVF II Meerkat (DE) LLC offloaded 7.64 crore shares at US$3.35 each, cutting SoftBank's holding from 6.84% in September to an estimated 5.19%.
Who bought? Sixteen institutional investors absorbed the block. FidelityDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → was the largest buyer with 1.88 crore shares, followed by Societe Generale and Morgan Stanley Asia Singapore; Goldman SachsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, Norges BankDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, and Singapore's sovereign funds also participated.
Why now? The sale follows a September divestment, when SoftBank sold a 1.73% stake for roughly US$224.1M. It fits a broader pattern of the Japanese investor paring back Indian holdings, including repeated Lenskart sales this year.
The business context: Meesho posted a 38% year-on-year rise in operating revenue to US$561.1M in its fiscal second quarter. Its net loss narrowed 68% to US$17.9M from US$55.8M a year earlier, though the company remains loss-making.
The signal: Strong institutional demand — and a rise in Meesho's shares on the day — suggests the exit reflects SoftBank monetising its portfolio, not doubts about Meesho, which closed Friday with a market value of US$16.2B.
Read more: siliconindia.com
Image credit: Generated with Gemini
