By Jason Chau

Indian e-commerce company Meesho has started taking orders for an initial public offering, aiming to raise about $603 million as it joins one of the world's busiest listing markets.

The company, backed by Japan's SoftBank Group. Corp and Dutch investment firm Prosus, is the latest to tap India's buzzing IPO scene, which has hosted a string of listings this year as firms eye the economy's solid growth and huge market potential.

Bengaluru-based Meesho is seeking to raise up to 54.21 billion rupees, or about $602.9 million, in total proceeds. That includes $130.3 million from a public issue of shares priced at 105 rupees to 111 rupees each, and $472.6 million from a stock sale by existing shareholders.

The offer is set to close Friday, with shares expected to start trading on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange on Dec. 10.

In a filing, Meesho said it has secured 125 anchor investors, including high-profile backers such as SBI funds, BlackRock, Fidelity, Franklin Templeton and Morgan Stanley.

On Tuesday, Meesho, which operates a platform where budget-conscious consumers can buy everyday goods directly from sellers, issued 219.78 million shares at 111 rupees each to anchors investors, raising about $271.3 million. Almost a quarter were allocated to SBI funds.

The company plans to use the net proceeds of the IPO for cloud infrastructure investment, staffing its artificial-intelligence and technology teams, and potential acquisitions.

Meesho's listing adds to the over 200 IPOs launched on the BSE so far this year, exchange data show. Many offerings, such as the ones by at-home services provider Urban Company and online broker Groww, have been oversubscribed.

However, even in-demand companies have fizzled when they debut, and it remains to be seen how Meesho will fare when it goes public.

Trends in India's e-commerce sector offer a potential tailwind. Analysts at AngelOne note that adoption is shifting from high-ticket electronics toward discretionary lifestyle segments.

By fiscal 2030, the sector is forecast to expand to $174 billion-$214 billion, capturing a 12%-13% share of India's retail market, they estimate.

Meesho has generated strong revenue growth but remains loss-making amid aggressive scaling, the analysts said in a report.

"While strong scale momentum supports the growth narrative, near-term profitability remains volatile, positioning the offering as suitable primarily for long-term investors with a high risk appetite," they added.

JP Morgan, Citigroup and Morgan Stanley are among the managers for Meesho's offering.

Write to Jason Chau at jason.chau@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 03, 2025 01:16 ET (06:16 GMT)

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