Gensol's much-feared default; Ola's post-IPO lessons

Happy Friday! Gensol Engineering has failed to make repayments on bonds that used BluSmart taxis as collateral. This and more in today’s ETtech Morning Dispatch.

Also in the letter:
■ Walmart’s roadmap
■ Razorpay reverse flips
■‘Babyscalers’ shine
Gensol defaults on BluSmart-linked bond repayment for May

Solar energy solutions provider Gensol Engineering has defaulted on bond repayments worth Rs 4 crore in May.

Driving the news: The debt instruments, known as pass-through certificates (PTCs), were issued in 2023 via the online platform Grip Invest to raise capital, with 76 electric taxis from BluSmart pledged as collateral.

According to Care Edge Ratings, these bonds had a coupon rate of 13.6% and were set to mature in 2027.

What happened: While the BluSmart cabs were operational, cash flows from their rides funded timely repayments. But with the fleet grounded and negotiations ongoing with Uber and other fleet partners, future payments to bondholders are in limbo.


Bring back on track: The Delhi High Court has authorised Vriksh Advisors, a subsidiary of Grip Invest, to operate, sell, or lease the BluSmart taxis.

The firm is exploring deployment on alternative ride-sharing platforms, Agarwal said. However, several commercial and operational hurdles remain before repayments can resume, according to an industry insider.

Rewind: BluSmart halted operations last month after the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) took action against its promoters, Gensol Engineering founders Anmol Singh Jaggi and Puneet Singh Jaggi. The regulator accused them of siphoning company funds for their personal luxury expenses.
Ola Electric Q4 net loss doubles to Rs 870 crore as revenue slumps 62%

Ola Electric’s financial troubles deepened in Q4 FY25, with net losses doubling and revenue suffering one of the steepest falls since the company began delivering electric two-wheelers in late 2021.

Financials:

• Operating revenue: Rs 611 crore, down 61.8% from Rs 1,598 crore a year ago.
• Net loss: Rs 870 crore, versus Rs 416 crore in Q4 FY24.

Yes, and: The slump in sales came ahead of a shrinking market share. Ola Electric slipped to third place in the electric two-wheeler segment in May, as legacy companies TVS Motor and Bajaj Auto gained ground.

Ola Electric learnt key lessons post-IPO: CEO Bhavish Aggarwal after a rough Q4
Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO, Ola Electric

Ola Electric underwent “ important learning and introspection” last quarter, said chief executive Bhavish Aggarwal, as the company recalibrates its strategy post-listing.

Quote, unquote: “Going forward, hence you will see us be deeper as well as thoughtful about capital allocation and operating risk,” Aggawal said in a post-earnings call.

Road ahead: The company plans to be more prudent with capital deployment for new product development, he added.

Rising woes: This is among the sharpest revenue declines for the Aggarwal-led firm. The company continues to face headwinds, from growing customer complaints to ongoing investigations by regulatory bodies.

Lender Oxyzo’s FY25 revenue rises 34%, net profit up 17%
Ruchi Kalra, cofounder, Oxyzo

Oxyzo Financial Services, the lending arm of SoftBank-backed OfBusiness, reported a 33.6% rise in operating revenue to Rs 1,207 crore for the fiscal year ending March 2025, driven by a 32% increase in interest income. Net profit for the period increased 17% to Rs 339.1 crore from Rs 290.5 crore a year ago.
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Quick commerce is 20% of India’s ecommerce and growing fast: Walmart
Kathryn McLay , CEO, Walmart International

Quick commerce now accounts for 20% of India’s ecommerce market and is growing at an annual rate of 50%, Walmart International CEO Kathryn McLay said at the Bernstein Strategic Decisions Conference.

Driving the news: IPO-bound Flipkart has secured a cash injection of Rs 2,225 crore ($260 million) from its Singapore-based parent to scale up businesses, like its quick commerce unit, Minutes.

• The company aims to operate 800 dark stores by the end of 2025. It has already crossed the halfway mark, VP Kabeer Biswas told us earlier this month.
• McLay stated that Walmart will not sacrifice market share in pursuit of profitability.

The big picture:

• Flipkart competes with Blinkit, Instamart, Zepto, BigBasket, Amazon, and JioMart in India’s increasingly crowded quick commerce race.
• As ET reported on May 19, top FMCG firms including HUL, Dabur, and Britannia posted Rs 4,400 crore in FY25 quick commerce sales— just 2–4% of total revenue.

Also Read: Flipkart growing at 20-25% annually despite broader ecommerce slowdown: Group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy
Razorpay completes reverse flip from US to India after MCA approval
(L-R) Harshil Mathur, Shashank Kumar, cofounders, Razorpay

Razorpay has completed the reverse flip of its parent entity from the US to India, following final approval from the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), we have learnt.

Why it matters: This move, under the easier domicile shift rules, is meant to comply with Indian regulations before the fintech unicorn can list in the country.

Quick recap:

• Razorpay started work on its flipback plan in May 2023.
• The process required clearance from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), followed by the MCA nod, which was granted recently.
• In April, Razorpay’s board also approved its conversion into a public limited company.

By the numbers:

• $180 billion in annual payment volume
• Rs 2,500 crore in FY24 payments biz revenue
• Rs 34 crore in net profit (payments unit)
• Overall, the company still reports consolidated losses

What’s next: Razorpay is targeting profitability by 2026 and intends to go public on Indian stock exchanges shortly after.

Also Read: Groww’s valuation cut in domicile shift to India; Razorpay may follow
Other Top Stories By Our Reporters
Byju Raveendran, founder, Byju's

SC refuses stay on Byju’s insolvency: The Supreme Court Bench sought a response from the creditors of Byju’s parent Think & Learn—Aditya Birla Finance, US lender Glas Trust Co. LLC, and others—and set the next hearing date for July 21.

Tech experts bat for AI regulations for safe adoption: While AI will be a catalyst for India’s economic growth, guardrails and governance will be key to adopt the technology safely and to build resilience amid possible disruption, industry leaders emphasised.

Big Tech expresses dissatisfaction with draft data localisation norms: The yet-to-be-notified draft Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Rules introduce the potential for new data localisation requirements, conflicting with the DPDP Act's supportive approach towards data flows, trade associations told the IT ministry in a letter last week, we have learnt.
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