Pine Labs IPO: Early investors to score high returns, founder set for 451x gain
Pine Labs' IPO will be a mixed bag for its investors, as very early investors stand to make handsome returns, while late investors will get moderate gains.
Fintech startup Pine Labs' early investors are set to make handsome returns with its initial public offering (IPO), while later investors will receive moderate returns as the company has set its price band.
Pine Labs has set a price band for its IPO in the range of Rs 210 to Rs 221, and the issue will be a combination of offer for sale and fresh issue of shares. This startup plans to raise Rs 3,990 crore through the public issue.
Among the investors, which also includes the founder who will be tendering their shares for the issue, the returns they would make vary depending on the acquisition price.
Founder Lokvir Kapoor is set to make the highest return of 451x with his acquisition price of Rs 0.49, taking into account the upper end of the price band at Rs 221.
The other investors who will be tendering their shares in public issue and their acquisition price are: Peak XV Partners (Rs 5.60), Actis Pine Labs (Rs 71.43), Macritche Investments (Rs 76.67), PayPal (Rs 77.78), Mastercard (Rs 128.62), Invesco (Rs 243.89), Madison India Opportunities IV (Rs 39.43), Lone Cascade (Rs 190.87), and Sofina Ventures (Rs 47.22).
On the upper price band, Peak XV Partners is set to make around 39.4x return and Sofina Ventures at 4.7x. However, for some investors like Mastercard and Lone Cascade, the returns will be relatively lower at 1.7x and 1.15x, respectively. However, in the case of Invesco, it will surprisingly sell its share at a loss as it acquired at Rs 243.89, but the IPO price is much lower than that.
This also reflects the reality of many startups taking the public route. Pine Labs is now valued at around $2.7 billion, and this has come down from the earlier level of $6 billion.
Founded in 1998, Pine Labs provides digital payment solutions for merchants, consumer brands, enterprises and financial institutions. It has presence in India, Malaysia, the UAE, Singapore, Australia, the US, and Africa.
According to the company, in FY25, it processed payments of Rs 11.4 lakh crore in gross transaction value (“GTV”) and 5.68 billion transactions through its platforms. As of June 30, 2025, it had 988,304 merchants, 716 consumer brands and enterprises, and 177 financial institutions.
Pine Labs reported a revenue of Rs 2,274 crore for FY25—a growth of 29% compared with Rs 1,769 crore in FY24. The net loss came down to Rs 145 crore from Rs 341.9 crore.
Edited by Kanishk Singh