Over 500 Freshworks employees in India are now crorepatis — with 70 of them below the age of 30 — thanks to the Chennai- and Silicon Valley-based company getting listed on the Nasdaq and creating wealth for its employees. It is the first Indian SaaS company to go public. The firm has about 4,000 employees.

Today, 76 per cent of employees own shares in Freshworks. “I am truly happy and proud,” said Freshworks’ CEO Girish Mathrubootham on creating wealth for the employees through the listing.

“It gives me a great sense of fulfillment today. This IPO has given me an opportunity to fulfill my responsibility to all the employees of Freshworks till date who have believed in us over the last ten years and contributed to Freshworks,” he told newspersons on Wednesday from New York after ringing the ‘iconic’ Nasdaq opening bell in honour of their listing day.

“This [creating crorepatis] is truly that India needs to do more of. It is well deserved, and they all earned it. As the company grew, all these employees have contributed to that. I truly believe that wealth has to be shared with the people who created it. It is not just for the founders to get rich or the investors to get rich. I am super happy. We are making an impact and will continue to do that,” he said.

Freshworks is raising $1.02 billion as it set its IPO price at $36 per share, boosting its IPO share price for the second time in the past week and taking its valuation to over $10 billion. It began trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market on Wednesday under the symbol ‘FRSH' and the offering is expected to close on September 24, 2021.

Previous price range

Freshworks had earlier started with plans to sell its shares in the price range of $32-34 per share, after raising the range from $28-$32 per share. It has granted the underwriters a 30-day option to purchase up to an additional 2,850,000 shares of Class A common stock at the IPO price, net of underwriting discounts and commissions.

The company had earlier raised $400 million at a $3.5 billion valuation. Some of its investors include Sequoia Capital, Accel, Tiger Global Management, and CapitalG.

Started in a 700 square feet warehouse in Chennai in 2010, Freshworks crossed $300 million in annual recurring revenue this year. More than 50,000 companies use Freshworks’ SaaS to enable a better customer experience and employee experience, says information on the company website.

“As we continue our public journey, there is a massive opportunity for the company to create a life changing impact for many employees and people who believe in our mission. I know that it is still early days for Freshworks, but we will see the gains,” Mathrubootham said.

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