Oyo rejigs top brass ahead of IPO, replaces CEO of India business

IPO-bound Oyo on Thursday announced a major rejig in top management and appointed a new CEO of its India business.

The affordable lodging start-up has named Ankit Gupta, CEO of Oyo’s hotels and homes vertical, as chief executive of its India business. It also elevated Rohit Kapoor to a global role as the company’s marketing head, from his current position of CEO-India & Southeast Asia. It announced Ankit Tandon, global chief business officer, would take on the additional responsibility of Southeast Asia with a specific focus on Indonesia and the Middle East region as chief executive.

All three would report to Founder & Group CEO Ritesh Agarwal. The changes in the top management come at time when the company is awaiting a nod for its IPO from the capital markets regulator, even six months after filing the DRHP.

Oyo had filed draft IPO papers for a Rs 8,430-crore fundraise. The offering is slated to comprise a fresh issue of shares of up to Rs 7,000 crore and an offer-for-sale of as much as Rs 1,430 crore.

However, the SoftBank and Sequoia-backed company — against the backdrop of volatility in the equity market — is considering slashing its IPO size target by half or even suspending its primary market plans, said a source-based Bloomberg report. It, the report said, is also considering halving its expected valuation from the $12 billion originally targeted. The company has contested the news report.

The deliberations underscore investors’ reluctance to buy into IPOs during a time of market turmoil.

About the rejig, the company said that Kapoor would focus on lifting the brand persona of Oyo to a more aspirational consumer-tech brand and increase its affinity to strategically important customer cohorts, such as family and leisure travellers and corporate customers. He will also focus on introducing the Oyo brand to its European vacation homes business where the company currently uses multiple brands across the various north European countries where it operates.

Agarwal said: “Rohit has proven to be a tremendous asset for Oyo. He has consistently demonstrated his acumen of rejuvenating and transforming every business that he has led for the company. We will be banking on him to uplift the brand and marketing through his exceptional first-principles approach and his deep understanding of Oyo as a business operator.”

He further said: “Ankit Gupta has played an instrumental role in growing Oyo’s business, such as Oyo Townhouse -- our flagship mid-market brand which customers love. I am confident he will catalyse Oyo’s India region growth and take it to new heights.”

Kapoor, Tandon, and Gupta will take on their new responsibilities effective from April 1, 2022.