Bollywood actor Sidharth Malhotra has invested in travel tech firm OYO, sources confirmed to Storyboard18. This move follows his early investment in Swiggy.
Malhotra was among the early investors in Swiggy, while the food tech player was preparing for its IPO.
In a notable trend that highlights the evolving landscape of investment in India’s emerging sectors, a host of celebrities, including sports icons and entertainment moguls, invested in Swiggy. The list includes Rahul Dravid and Zaheer Khan, tennis star Rohan Bopanna, filmmaker Karan Johar, and actor-entrepreneur Ashish Chowdhry have joined this trend as well.
Industry sources said Malhotra’s investment strategy centers around identifying cutting-edge ventures that address local challenges while possessing the scalability to become global leaders. The actor’s investment approach reflects a broader trend of Indian celebrities taking strategic positions in technology-driven companies.
OYO clocked its first-ever profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 229 crore for FY24, a significant turnaround from the Rs 1,286 crore loss it posted the previous year, the company said in a statement on August 14.
This turnaround was fueled by a stringent cost cuts and a Rs 453 crore boost from exceptional items, including a Rs 240 crore fair value gain from acquiring Oyo Hotels Cayman and a Rs 249 crore reversal of financial liability.
The profit follows eight consecutive quarters of positive Adjusted EBITDA, which grew 215 percent to Rs 877 crore in FY24 from Rs 277 crore in the previous year.
Read More:EXCLUSIVE: Sidharth Malhotra takes a bite of Swiggy; invests in IPO-bound food delivery app