Two senior executives at Oyo, the budget-hospitality startup, have stepped down from their positions just a few months before the company’s planned public listing. Ankit Gupta, who served as the India chief executive, and Mandar Vaidya, who led the European business, have left the firm. Oyo has confirmed their departures, stating that they occurred six months ago. This news follows Oyo’s decision to delay its listing plans multiple times due to market conditions, with the current plan aiming for later this year.
Key Takeaway
- Senior executives Ankit Gupta and Mandar Vaidya have left Oyo, the budget-hospitality startup, just months before its planned public listing.
- Oyo has delayed its listing plans several times and is now expected to go public in November, aiming to raise around $600 million.
- SoftBank, the largest investor in Oyo, marked down its valuation of the startup to $2.7 billion last year.
- Oyo has appointed Varun Jain as the COO of Oyo India and Gautam Swaroop as the CEO of Oyo Vacation Homes to fill the vacated positions.
Originally, Oyo filed paperwork to go public in October 2021, with the goal of raising up to $1.6 billion at a valuation of approximately $12 billion. However, the plans have since been postponed, and the target raise has been reduced to around $600 million. The listing is now scheduled for November. The departure of these senior executives adds to a series of challenging developments for Oyo, a company that was once valued at $10 billion. SoftBank, Oyo’s largest investor, marked down the value of its holding in the startup last year, resulting in a valuation of $2.7 billion.
According to insight platform Tracxn, Oyo has raised a total of $3.23 billion in equity and debt funding rounds over the years. Oyo has now appointed Varun Jain as the COO of Oyo India and Gautam Swaroop as the CEO of Oyo Vacation Homes to replace the roles previously held by Gupta and Vaidya.
