Ritesh Agarwal-led OYO delays third IPO attempt as SoftBank says earnings aren’t strong enough: Report

Shark Tank India judge Ritesh Agarwal-led OYO has once again delayed its initial public offering (IPO), this time deferring its public market debut to March 2026, Bloomberg reported.

The report comes amid renewed pressure from its largest shareholder, SoftBank, which is said to be resisting the company's proposed October 2025 listing.

The report said that a Japanese investment giant has expressed concerns over the company's financial readiness and is urging the hospitality firm to wait for a more robust earnings profile before hitting the bourses. SoftBank, which owns a sizable stake in OYO, has reportedly asked founder and CEO Ritesh Agarwal to reconsider the listing timeline despite his push for an expedited IPO.

A loan and its deadline

Agarwal, who borrowed $2.2 billion in 2019 to raise his stake in OYO, had reportedly been seeking a quick listing to fulfil conditions tied to the restructured loan. The debt, which carries a personal guarantee from SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son, required instalment payments starting December 2024.

While lenders indicated a willingness to allow the deadline to be extended if the company is listed this year, SoftBank may now negotiate a timeline extension in return for delaying the IPO, Bloomberg noted.

Valuation decline

When OYO first filed for its IPO in 2021, it sought a valuation of up to $12 billion. That ambition has steadily tempered: the company confidentially refiled its documents with SEBI in March 2023 and withdrew them again in May 2024. The upcoming listing, if it materialises by early 2026, is now expected to value the firm closer to $7 billion, a significant markdown from its earlier targets.

The delay places OYO among a growing list of companies reevaluating their IPO timelines amid macroeconomic uncertainty. LG Electronics' Indian unit recently postponed its listing plans, and electric mobility startup Ather Energy downsized its IPO and halved its valuation amid market turbulence.

Financial growth

OYO's financials present a mixed picture. The company turned profitable in FY24, reporting a net profit of Rs 229 crore—its first full-year profit—despite a modest dip in revenue to Rs 5,389 crore from Rs 5,464 crore the previous year. 

In the third quarter of FY25 (October to December), net profit rose sharply to Rs 166 crore, a six-fold increase over the prior year, while revenue grew 31% year-over-year to Rs 1,695 crore.