Indian OTA plans $100m Nasdaq IPO

MakeMyTrip, a major online travel agent in the growing Indian market, has announced plans to list on Nasdaq.

MakeMyTrip, a major online travel agent in the growing Indian market, has announced plans to list on Nasdaq.


It hopes to raise $100m from an unspecified number of shares. Its statement also declined to suggest a price for the shares.


The business started in 2000 in the US, selling flights to India to non-resident Indians. In 2005, it started operations in India, and in 2009 had the highest level of gross bookings of any Indian OTA.


The business is still operating at a loss – for the year to end-March 08 it recorded a net loss of $18.9m; for 2009 it was $7.3m in the red and for 2010 the deficit was $6.2m.


The business is heavily geared towards air. In 2010, revenues less service costs from air were $31.1m; hotels and packages were worth $8m.


US research group PhoCusWright is involved with the business, with founder and CEO Philip Wolf on the board of directors.  The SEC statement revealed that the research group will earn $20,000 for “the provision of certain professional services” under deal signed in Feb2010 lasting until June 2011.


PhoCusWright “is also entitled to receive 3% of all revenue generated from bookings made by new customers from February 2010 to  July 31, 2011 from North America for our United States-to-India inbound services.”