Now Reading: SoftBank sells Rs 2,888 crore Lenskart stake, holding drops to 7.28%
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SoftBank sells Rs 2,888 crore Lenskart stake, holding drops to 7.28%
SoftBank sells Rs 2,888 crore Lenskart stake, holding drops to 7.28%
SoftBank Group has sold a 2.58 per cent stake in eyewear retailer Lenskart for Rs 2,888 crore through open market transactions on Monday. The Japan-based investor, through its affiliate SVF II Lightbulb…
SoftBank Group has sold a 2.58 per cent stake in eyewear retailer Lenskart for Rs 2,888 crore through open market transactions on Monday. The Japan-based investor, through its affiliate SVF II Lightbulb (Cayman) Ltd, offloaded 4.5 crore equity shares at an average price of Rs 641.75 apiece.
This is SoftBank's second stake sale in Lenskart in two months. In June, it sold a 3.25 per cent stake for Rs 2,873 crore. After the latest sale, SoftBank's holding in Lenskart stands at 7.28 per cent, down from 9.86 per cent. It remains the second-largest public shareholder. Platinum Jasmine A 2018 Trust, an arm of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, is the largest public shareholder with a 9.77 per cent stake.
The block deal attracted a wide range of institutional investors. Domestic buyers included National Pension System Trust and mutual funds managed by SBI, Edelweiss, Nippon India, Franklin Templeton, HDFC, HSBC, ICICI Prudential, Motilal Oswal and Sundaram. Among foreign investors, Societe Generale bought the largest chunk, 1,07,35,000 shares (0.62 per cent stake) worth Rs 688.91 crore. Other foreign buyers included Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, BNP Paribas, Vanguard, and Kuwait Investment Authority.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Both ET Retail and Livemint report the same block deal data, and their coverage is uniform straight reporting with no discernible editorial slant. The story is a standard corporate finance transaction note: seller, price, buyer list, and resulting shareholding. There is no government role or policy angle to frame. The only notable omission is any mention of Lenskart's valuation or the reason behind SoftBank's continued exits. What matters next is whether SoftBank further reduces its stake in future quarters and how Lenskart's growth metrics hold up without its largest early backer.
Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral
Sources (2): retail.economictimes.indiatimes.com (neutral report), livemint.com (neutral report)
This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry.
