Microsoft invested a hefty amount of $5 million in OYO at a valuation of $9billion

Everyone is well aware of the name OYO. OYO has been the fastest growing and most successful start-up in India to this date. It offers affordable hotel rooms for users throughout the country. Not only in India, but OYO has also been pretty popular among other countries like the USA, China, and Europe. Since it started, it has been growing very exponentially.

Unfortunately, when COVID hits the country in 2020, every company has suffered in India, including OYO. Because of the lockdown, OYO has seen a massive drop in its revenue. However, as the country is slowly recovering, OYO is also making better progress. As a part of its progress, OYO received a hefty amount of investment from the tech giant Microsoft.

Based on reports, Microsoft has invested nearly $5 million in the Indian startup OYO. Whereas the company valuation stands at the $9 billion mark. As per the deal, OYO will allot 5 equity shares and 80 preference shares to the tech giant Microsoft Corporation. At an issue price of $58,490 per share to raise $5Million.

It is worth noting that OYO has a significant number, in valuation due to the coronavirus crisis. In 2019, this India-based startup has reached a valuation of $10 billion. To cope with the losses, OYO has laid off many of its employees and pay cuts during this period. Also, it had terminated many of its non-performing businesses.

The coronavirus has significantly impacted OYO along with every other business. However, this deal can be considered as a strategic deal between both parties. Because OYO is planning to use Microsoft’s cloud services. Cloud services like Microsoft Azure can help OYO with multiple services. Services like analytics, computing, storage, and networking.

Which could boost the Indian-based startup OYO in regaining its performance. Along with this, OYO has recently informed that it is planning for an IPO in the upcoming months. Oyo’s founder Ritesh Agarwal informed in the month of July about the public offering but did not confirm any particular timeline.

Recently we have seen many private companies entering the stock market with IPO’s. Companies like Zomato, Policy Bazar and more have successfully entered the market. They have rewritten the theory that startup-based companies can’t make it to the stock market listings”. India has witnessed companies like Zomato entering the market. Many similar companies are making their way to the stock market through IPO’s.

Apart from this, Microsoft is also very keen on investing in Indian-based startups. Over the past few years, Microsoft has invested in companies like Dailyhunt, FarEye, and e-commerce giant Flipkart.

Microsoft even started a global accelerator program in India where it provides necessary training and knowledge for startups on how to run a company successfully. With all this, we can say that Microsoft understands that India is the fastest-growing country. In addition, it is the youngest country so it could witness high growth in terms of businesses and user base. To not miss these upcoming opportunities, Microsoft is tightening its roots in India.