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Caller identification service provider Truecaller is exploring the option of listing on the Indian stock exchanges as it works towards meeting the requirements for the same over the next three years. If successful, it would become the first international tech start-up to list in India.
“We are thinking it through (listing in India). The risk profile that we have from a corporate perspective is strong India exposure with a European governance on top. It could IPO very well on Nasdaq or London, but India is also in consideration because India is our largest market,” Sandeep Patil, MD, Truecaller, told BusinessLine .
Patil is the company’s first Managing Director and is based in India, in a move that highlights Truecaller’s growing focus on the country’s market.
Pre-requisites
India regulations currently do not allow international companies to list in the country unless they shift their headquarters here or want to list an Indian subsidiary. That could be a challenge for Truecaller, but according to Patil, if the company does decide to list in India, it could even look at shifting its base to India.
Close to 150 million of its 200 million monthly active users are based in India. Even in terms of revenues, 75 per cent of it comes from India.
“About 75 per cent of our users are in India and 75 per cent of our revenues also come from India. We currently have about 60 per cent of our staff based in India, and we are hiring aggressively in India and expect employee count here to also go up to 75 per cent of our global headcount soon.
“India will be the template that will used in Africa and other emerging regions. We can export the same products that are built in India for the Indian market to other international markets as well.”
As a build-up to the IPO, the company is working on launching new services in India that include a new lending platform in partnership with NBFCs.
Truecaller credit
One of the first major launches will be Truecaller’s lending service. The service will allow users to get personlised loan products through the existing Truecaller app. The firm is partnering with select BFSI firms to offer the service.
“We’ll offer every loan product that a user may be looking for,” he said.
According to Patil, Truecaller may also apply for an NBFC licence to expand its lending services.
“We may seek a licence because we want to encourage experimentation, but we are not looking at building a balance sheet.”
The company launched UPI (Unified Payments Interface) payments in 2018, but the transactions have remained low on the app despite it getting 25 per cent of the new UPI handles registered on the Truecaller app. Patil said the idea was to increase engagement with users and not necessarily make money from UPI services.
“We don’t want to pay to get users like many others are doing. Our focus is on enhancing the time spent on the app. Already, 79 per cent of all our active users use our app at least once a day. That’s more than 2-3 times more than what most consumer apps see,” Patil claimed.
B2B listing services
Truecaller is also launching a platform that will enable SMEs to connect with potential clients in a locality. For example, plumbers and carpenters in a locality will be able to connect with clients on the app.
“We want to be able to use technology to solve real problems. Over the next few years, we are looking to get a third of our revenues from financial services and another third from advertising, and the balance from subscription.”
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