Online travel platform MakeMyTrip has secured $3.1 billion through a combination of equity and debt, according to its banker Morgan Stanley.
In a regulatory filing on Tuesday, MakeMyTrip announced plans to raise $3 billion to repurchase shares from Trip.com Group, thereby bringing down the Chinese firm’s stake from 45% to 20%.
This marks the largest capital raise to date by a publicly listed Indian internet company.
“Primary equity follow-on offering of 18,400,000 ordinary equity shares priced at $90 per share and five-year convertible senior notes offering, at zero percent coupon and 35.0% conversion premium, together represent APAC’s largest concurrent offering of equity follow-on and convertible notes since 2022,” said Kamal Yadav, managing director, investment banking, at Morgan Stanley.
MakeMyTrip cofounders Deep Kalra and Rajesh Magow currently control 4.6% of the company’s voting rights and both continue to serve on the board—Kalra as chairman. They also maintain the authority to appoint three independent directors.
Following the share buyback, Trip.com’s stake in MakeMyTrip has decreased from 45.34% to 19.99%, and its board representation has been reduced from five members to two.
This development comes just a month after the company faced criticism over concerns that its Chinese ownership could compromise the travel data of Indian army personnel.
Trip.com initially invested in MakeMyTrip in January 2016 by purchasing $180 million worth of convertible bonds. In 2019, Ctrip, now known as Trip.com, acquired a 42% stake in MakeMyTrip from Naspers through a share-swap deal by offering Naspers a 5.6% stake in Ctrip in return.
