Japan’s SoftBank Group Corp. has written down as much as 58.1 billion yen ($555 million) in two of its biggest investments in India, cab-hailing firm Ola (ANI Technologies Pvt. Ltd) and e-commerce marketplace Snapdeal (Jasper Infotech Pvt. Ltd), the company said.
“In a portfolio that spawns multi-billion dollars, $550 million may not raise too many eyebrows,” said Sanchit Vir Gogia, chief analyst and chief executive at Greyhound Research.
“There is definitely pressure on both sides, investors as well as companies. SoftBank has started putting its house in order. I am not surprised with the tune of the money. It is not as if it is not eyebrow raising. Inflated valuation will stop and this is a precursor to that. But, we have to remember that existing investors, especially SoftBank, will not let valuation go below a certain point. There will be some amount of protectionism from existing investors to protect the valuations.” he added.
Source: Live Mint