Cars24’s IPO Timeline Cars24’s chief financial officer, Shivanshu Makkar, told PTI that the company will be eligible to file its draft red‑herring prospectus (DRHP) in India by April. The eligibility follows the completion of a reverse flip, a process that will take between six and nine months.
Reverse Flip Process The reverse flip is a corporate restructuring that moves a Singapore‑based entity to Indian jurisdiction. Cars24, incorporated in Singapore in 2015, has already secured approval from Singapore for the flip and is now filing the necessary paperwork in India. Once the company becomes an Indian entity, it can file the DRHP, after which SEBI approvals, pricing and book‑building will take an additional three to four months.
Capital Strategy and Expansion Plans Cars24’s last external funding round was in 2022, valuing the company at $3.3 billion post‑money. Makkar emphasized that the firm has not needed fresh capital since then and is “sitting on decent enough capital.” The IPO, he said, is primarily a vehicle to create a war chest for deeper penetration in India and entry into new geographies.
The company currently operates in 25 Indian cities and aims to reach 200 cities with 50,000 cars in the future. In the Gulf, Cars24 holds roughly 7 % of the used‑car market and is growing at nearly 30 %. It has also expanded to three cities in Australia.
Governance and Liquidity Benefits Beyond capital, Makkar highlighted the governance stamp that comes with a public listing. “When you become a listed entity, there is a stamp on your governance,” he said. Even if Cars24 could raise funds through other means, an IPO would still offer regulatory credibility and liquidity for shareholders and employees.
Future Outlook Cars24 has no set valuation target for the IPO and does not view the listing as an end goal. The company’s focus remains on scaling operations and capturing the large headroom in India’s used‑car market, where only about 5 % of Indians own a car.
The next key milestones will be the DRHP filing in April, SEBI approval, pricing, and the eventual listing date, all of which will be closely watched by investors and industry analysts alike.