Warburg Pincus invests USD 100 mn in boAt

New Delhi: Consumer tech products brand boAt on Wednesday said it has raised USD 100 million (about Rs 731.6 crore) in funding from an affiliate of Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm.

While boAt did not disclose the valuation at which the funds were raised, it said the fresh capital will enable it to further fortify its leading market position and widen its Research and development (R&D) capabilities and product portfolio.

The funding will also help build on boAt’s efforts to create and support a manufacturing ecosystem under the Make-in-India initiative, a statement said.

The product portfolio of boAt includes headphones, earphones, smartwatches, speakers, travel chargers and premium cables.

Launched in 2016, boAt currently has approximately 150 employees on its team across its offices in Delhi and Mumbai. In 2018, it had announced raising Rs 6 crore in funding from Fireside Ventures.

The consumer tech products firm continues to achieve rapid revenue growth (more than 100 per cent over the past several years) and exhibits a strong profitability profile, the statement said.

In addition to solidifying its position in the Indian market as a leading player, boAt has also emerged as the 5th largest wearable brand globally, the company said citing IDC data.

“This (funding) is a vote of confidence for our business model and growth prospects… The investment has come at the right time as we make efforts to ramp up our manufacturing and global supply chain,” boAt co-founder Aman Gupta said.

According to boAt co-founder Sameer Mehta, going forward, with the government’s support, the company will focus on building capabilities in domestic R&D and undertake vertical integration across both the hearable and wearable space to establish India as a global supplier.

Avendus Capital acted as the exclusive financial advisor to boAt and its shareholders on the transaction.