BharatPe begins stake sale process in Unity SFB, appoints Rothschild
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Mumbai: New-age non-bank lender BharatPe is looking to sell anywhere between 10% and 25% stake in Unity Small Finance Bank, depending on buyer interest, two people with knowledge of the development said. The Peak XV-backed fintech firm holds around 49% stake in the small finance bank currently.
BharatPe is scouting for private equity firms and large family offices for the stake sale and has appointed investment bank Rothschild & Co. to help it look for buyers, the people cited above said on condition of anonymity. “BharatPe is likely to sell more stake if more buyers line up," the first person cited above said, adding that as per its agreement with RBI, the NBFC (non-banking finance company) has to bring down its stake in Unity SFB to 10% by 2028.
The agreement was struck at the time a consortium of Centrum Financial Services Ltd and BharatPe acquired the small finance bank licence. Unity SFB is promoted by Centrum Financial Services and is backed by BharatPe’s parent, Resilient Innovations Pvt. Ltd (RIPL) as the financial investor.
The first person added that Unity SFB will also need to comply with RBI guidelines that no single stakeholder should have more than 10% stake before a financial entity like Unity goes for public listing. “Hence, BharatPe has decided to explore a stake sale," the first person added. Also read | BharatPe settles with Ashneer Grover, to end all ties with former co-founder Unity SFB, which has completed three years of operations, is required to go public after two more years.
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