Policybazaar CEO Yash Dhaiya to sell up to 3.77 million equity shares through open market

Yashish Dahiya, Chairman and CEO of PB Fintech, which operates online insurance broker PolicyBazaar and loan marketplace Paisabazaar, has revealed his plan to sell up to 3.77 million equity shares through open market. 

The chairman intends to offload partial stake via bulks deals on the exchanges. He currently holds 24.52 million shares in the company.

The aggregate shareholding of Yashish Dahiya as on March 31, 2022, stood at 19 million (4.23 percent) and post exercise of 5.5 million ESOPs during May 2022, his aggregate shareholding increased to 24.5 million (5.45 percent). 

As the ESOPs are subject to payment of taxes on exercise in addition to the payment of capital gain tax on the sale of shares, the proceeds from the sale of the 3.77 (37,69,471 shares) shares are proposed to be used to make the payment of current and future taxes, the company said in a exchange filing.

“Further, aggregate shareholding of Yashish Dahiya on account of exercise of 71,96,604 stock options, which will get vested and exercisable over a period of five years commencing from the grant date i.e. October 5, 2021, will increase to 2,80,92,982 (5.98%) on a fully diluted basis post the proposed sale,” the statement read. 

“For avoidance of any doubt, there is no further sale of shares planned beyond these shares, at least for a year,” it added. 

Share crash by 13 percent

In November 2021, Gurugram-based PB Fintech came out with its Rs 5,710 crore initial public offering (IPO). The company's co-founders and other shareholders had reduced their stake in the public issue. 

Yashish’s average cost of acquisition per share had worked at Rs 91.35, while it was Rs 88.16 for co-founder Alok Bansal during the IPO. 

In February 2022, Alok divested 2.85 million shares of PB Fintech at an average price of Rs 825 a piece, valuing the transaction size to Rs 236 crore, as per the NSE bulk deal data.

The selling price of Yashish’s deal will be disclosed after the bulk deal is executed, or by day-end.  

Shares of PB Fintech were trading in the NSE at Rs 575 at 1:15 pm on June 7, 2022, down by 12.71 percent (previous close was at 658.75). Even at the lower market price, the transaction will be accretive in value owing to the lower average cost of acquisition.

The company had hit a record low of Rs 542.30 on May 12, 2022, from an all-time high of Rs 1,470 on November 17, 2021.

(The story was updated with details pertaining to average cost of acquisition for Yashish Dahiya).