PhysicsWallah adds three independent directors ahead of IPO
The Alakh Pandey-led firm has onboarded Deepak Amitabh, Rachna Dikshit, and Nitin Savara as independent directors.
IPO-bound edtech company (PW) has added three independent directors to its board, according to filings with the Registrar of Companies.
The Alakh Pandey-led firm has onboarded Deepak Amitabh, Rachna Dikshit, and Nitin Savara as independent directors, the edtech said.
Amitabh, a 1984 batch IRS officer, led PTC India and now oversees Adani Group’s flagship operations. Dikshit, a former RBI regional director, serves as an independent director in several companies. Savara, ex-deputy CFO at Zomato, holds similar roles across multiple firms.
Along with these three individuals, PW’s board includes Sandeep Singhal, Co-founder and Managing Partner at WestBridge Capital India Advisors, as well as the company’s co-founders, Alakh Pandey and Prateek Maheshwari. The board has reclassified the co-founders as whole-time directors from executive directors.
In December, PW converted into a public entity and rebranded to PhysicsWallah Limited from PhysicsWallah Private Limited—a crucial step before filing for an initial public offering (IPO).
The Noida-based firm, preparing to go public this year, is expected to file its draft IPO papers soon. It has reportedly enlisted Kotak Mahindra Capital, Goldman Sachs, Axis Capital, and JP Morgan as its listing bankers.
Companies filing a DRHP with SEBI must have independent directors based on their chairman’s role: one-third of the board if non-executive, or half if executive.
As part of its IPO preparations, PW has made several key hires, including Ajinkya Jain as group general counsel, company secretary, and compliance officer. In November, it appointed former Blinkit CFO Amit Sachdeva as chief financial officer following the announcement of its FY23-24 financial results.
Last month, YourStory reported that PW is poised to become India’s most valuable edtech firm with about $25 million pre-IPO secondary funding round led by existing backer WestBridge Capital, pushing its valuation to $3.7 billion.
The company’s post-money valuation was at $2.8 billion following the $210 million Series B funding round last year. With the latest funding, PW’s post-money valuation is set to surpass Unacademy ($3.4 billion) and Eruditus ($3.1 billion), based on their last valuations.
PW had been the only profitable edtech unicorn until FY22 while steadily growing its top line.
Edited by Suman Singh