Just months before it is due to be listed on the stock exchange, two senior executives at OYO—OYO India CEO Ankit Gupta and OYO Europe head Mandar Vaidya—have left the travel tech company, according to media reports.
Gupta had been associated with the hospitality unicorn since 2019 and held the position of CEO for its operations in India for a duration of approximately one year before departing in March of this year. Prior to this role, he served as the Chief Executive Officer responsible for the franchise and frontier business at OYO.
Vaidya also joined OYO’s parent Oravel Stays in 2019. He was CXO for South Asia and the Middle East before taking over as head of European operations in April 2021.
The unicorn has confirmed their departures, stating that both exits happened over six months ago. Furthermore, both had worked at the management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, before joining OYO in 2019.
OYO has recently re-submitted its proposal to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). This coincides with their submission of the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) using a new advance filing procedure.
OYO filed papers for an IPO in October 2021, aiming to raise up to USD 1.6 billion at a valuation of USD 12 billion. However, the listing was postponed, and the target raise has been reduced to USD 600 million for a November listing.
OYO recently made changes to its leadership team, with executives taking on new roles within the company. Abhinav Sinha is now in charge of product and technology, while Anuj Tejpal leads the Indian merchant team.
Shreerang Godbole is now the Chief Service Officer and will lead the data science division. Gautam Swaroop, CEO of OYO’s international business, will now oversee Weddingz, the wedding organisation division.
The company’s CTO Ankit Mathuria also quit in June this year.
Agarwal founded OYO in 2015. The company reached a peak valuation of USD 10 billion in June 2019. Agarwal bought USD 2 billion worth of OYO’s shares from Sequoia and Lightspeed Venture Partners. He borrowed the money from Japanese lenders in his personal capacity. After the deal, he owns 33 percent of the startup.
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