OYO raises $660M through debt funding

New Delhi, July 16 (IANS) OYO on Friday announced that it has raised a TLB (Term Loan B) funding of $660 million from global institutional investors.

A company statement said that the offer was oversubscribed by 1.7 times and the company received commitments of close to $1 billion from leading institutional investors.

The deal was upsized and increased by 10 per cent to $660 million as the company's fundamentals yielded strong interest from investors despite the virus surge.

The interest margin rate was also lowered by 25 basis points from the Initial Pricing Guidance to LIBOR+825 basis points.

The company will utilise these funds to retire its past debts, strengthen the balance sheet and other business purposes including investment in product technology, it said.

OYO is the first Indian startup to be publicly rated by Moody's and Fitch, two of the leading international rating agencies.

Fitch and Moody's rated OYO's senior secured loan B and B3 (stable outlook), respectively, on the back of the company's sound business model and resilient financial profile with significant potential upside.

This is a milestone transaction as OYO is the first Indian company to raise capital through the TLB route

Abhishek Gupta, Group Chief Financial Officer, OYO, said: "We are delighted by the response to OYO's maiden TLB capital raise that was oversubscribed by leading global institutional investors. We are thankful for the trust that they have placed in OYO's mission of creating value for owners and operators of hotels and homes across the globe.

"This is a testament to the strength and success of OYO's products at scale, our strong fundamentals and high-value potential. OYO is well capitalized and on the path of achieving profitability. Our two largest markets have demonstrated profitability at the slightest signs of industry recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic".

JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, and Mizuho Securities served as the lead arrangers for this financing.