Blackstone-Owned IGI India Files for ₹4,000 Crore IPO with SEBI

23 Aug 2024 , 12:53 PM

The Blackstone-backed International Gemmological Institute (IGI) India has taken a significant step towards its initial public offering (IPO) by filing preliminary papers with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The IPO aims to raise ₹4,000 Crore, which includes a fresh issuance of equity shares worth ₹1,250 Crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of shares worth ₹2,750 Crore by the sole promoter, BCP Asia II TopCo Pte Ltd. This entity is an affiliate of funds managed and advised by Blackstone.

IGI India specializes in providing certification and accreditation services for natural diamonds, laboratory-grown diamonds, studded jewelry, and colored stones. The company also offers educational programs in these areas. As the largest independent certification and accreditation service provider in India, IGI holds an estimated 50% market share in terms of the number of certifications issued for diamonds, studded jewelry, and colored stones in the calendar year 2023.

The company plans to utilize ₹1,100 Crore of the net proceeds from the fresh issue to acquire IGI Belgium Group and IGI Netherlands Group from its promoter, BCP Asia II TopCo Pte Ltd. The remaining funds will be allocated for general corporate purposes. BCP Asia II TopCo Pte Ltd is the sole shareholder of IGI Belgium and IGI Netherlands, which, along with their subsidiaries, manage IGI’s operations outside India and Turkey.

India continues to dominate the global diamond industry, accounting for approximately 95% of the world’s total polished diamonds in volume terms for the calendar year 2023. IGI India, which does not have any listed comparable peers, reported a net profit of ₹324.7 Crore for the financial year ending December 2023. This marks a 34.3% increase over the previous year’s profit of ₹241.76 Crore, driven by robust revenue growth and operational performance.

The Mumbai-based company, which follows a calendar year financial cycle, saw its revenue from operations increase by 30% year-on-year to ₹638.5 Crore in 2023. Its EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization) rose by 34.3% to ₹450.1 Crore, with the EBITDA margin expanding by 220 basis points to 70.5% compared to the previous year. For the first quarter ending March 2024, IGI India reported a profit of ₹124.8 Crore on revenue of ₹209.1 Crore.

Axis Capital, Kotak Mahindra Capital Company, Morgan Stanley India Company, and SBI Capital Markets have been appointed as the book-running lead managers for the issue.