Abu Dhabi Investment Authority to invest $500m in India's Lenskart

Eyewear retailer has raised $750m over the past 12 months and the latest funding round values the company at $4.5bn

A man walks towards a Lenskart showroom in Gurugram Haryana, India. Getty Images

Abu Dhabi Investment Authority is investing $500 million in India’s Lenskart, an online retailer for eyewear, becoming one of the largest shareholders in the company.

Adia will make the investment through a purchase of both primary and secondary shares, the companies said on Thursday.

The investment is subject to securing statutory and regulatory approvals.

Before the latest transaction, Lenskart's investors included Temasek Holdings, TPG, KKR and SoftBank.

Lenskart will have attracted nearly $750 million of capital over the last 12 months including recent fund-raising activities, making it one of the largest such growth-stage financings globally, upon completion of the transaction. The latest funding round values Lenskart at $4.5 billion.

A Lenskart showroom in India. The company said a new factory it plans to launch soon, will play a significant role in manufacturing 20 million pairs of glasses it aims to ship next year. photo: Lenskart / facebook

“Lenskart has rapidly established itself as one of the largest and most innovative eyewear companies globally,” said Hamad Al Dhaheri, executive director of Adia's private equities department.

“Given its unique technology-enabled and vertically integrated business model, we believe the company remains well positioned to build on its leadership position. This investment is a continuation of our strategy of investing in highly differentiated, market leading businesses in Asia linked to the region's consumption-driven growth and rapid technological advancement.”

Lenskart, founded by Peyush Bansal in 2010, sells eyeglasses, contact lenses and sunglasses online throughout India.

The company has expanded in Asia and the Middle East and now has more than 2,000 stores. Of these, 1,500 are in India and the rest are in South-East Asia and the Middle East.

“It is still Day 1 at Lenskart. Vision Correction remains a big problem, and Myopia rates continue to grow rapidly, touching levels of as high as 80-90 per cent in some parts of Asia,” said Mr Bansal, chief executive of Lenskart.

“Hence, we are still very early in our journey and have a lot of work to do to continue to make our desired impact in this area of critical need. And Adia, with its patient and long-term approach to investing, is a perfect partner for us as we embark on the next phase of our journey.”

Lenskart said a new factory it plans to launch soon, will play a significant role in manufacturing the 20 million pairs of eyewear that it aims to ship next year.

The company grew revenue by 60 per cent for the second year in a row and is now profitable.

“The next phase at Lenskart is a journey of 10 to 100 where we are focusing on building a diverse culture that enables innovation and execution at scale while solving a large bottleneck hindering high quality vision for all,” said Mr Bansal.

Avendus Capital acted as the exclusive financial adviser to Lenskart and its shareholders on the transaction.

EY advised Adia on accounting and tax matters in the transaction, while AZB & Partners and Allen & Overy were its legal advisers.

KPMG and PwC advised Lenskart on accounting and tax for the deal, while Rajaram Legal & Khaitan & Co were its legal advisers.