Veritas Finance explores ₹1,000 crore secondary deal as IPO plans delay

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories.Chennai-based Veritas Finance, a non-banking financial company, is exploring a private transaction worth ₹800–1,000 crore to facilitate exits for early investors after facing repeated delays in its public listing, three people familiar with the matter said.“The transaction is expected to give exits to some of its early backers like Lok Capital and British International Investment (BII), who have been invested in the company for a long time,” one of the people cited above said.Veritas’ move to explore a private market deal comes as it seeks to improve financial performance and reattempt a listing when public market valuations become more stable and conducive.“The round is likely to be secondary in nature and could become larger if other investors including Kedaara Capital and Norwest Venture Partners also look to sell some stake opportunistically,” the second person said.The person added that the company has also held discussions with investment banks including Avendus for a private transaction, although a formal banker appointment is due in the coming weeks.Veritas competes with Shriram Finance, Aye Finance, Vistaar Finance, Five Star Business Finance, Indostar Capital, Bajaj Finserv, Equitas Small Finance Bank and Lendingkart, among others.Veritas, Avendus, Norwest, and BII declined to comment while Kedaara and Lok Capital did not respond to Mint’s emails sent on Tuesday.“While the exact deal terms are yet to be decided, the company doesn’t need much primary capital at this stage so the round will largely be a secondary transaction,” a third person said, confirming the above details.In a secondary transaction, shareholders sell their stakes to other existing or new investors, and no