Cars24, an online marketplace for used cars, expects to become eligible to file its draft red herring prospectus by April after completing a reverse flip from Singapore to India. Chief Financial Officer Shivanshu Makkar said the company has secured Singapore's approval and is now filing the required papers in India. The redomiciling process may take six to nine months, and once it concludes the company will still need regulatory approvals, pricing, and book-building before any public debut.
Reverse Flip and IPO Timeline
Cars24 was incorporated in Singapore in 2015 and is now following a redomiciling path similar to the process previously undertaken by Flipkart and Myntra. Makkar told PTI that once the company becomes an Indian entity it can file its draft red herring prospectus. He added that approvals from SEBI, pricing, and book-building would follow, taking the overall initial public offering process into the second half of 2027.
Funding History and Capital Position
Cars24 last raised external capital in 2022 through a Series G round of US$400 million at a US$3.3 billion post-money valuation. The company has not completed another external funding round since then because it maintains sufficient cash and is not burning capital, according to Makkar. The initial public offering is therefore intended to support expansion opportunities rather than address an immediate liquidity gap or fund ongoing losses.
Expansion Plans and Market Opportunity
Makkar said primary capital raised through a listing would create a war chest to increase Cars24's presence in India and enter new geographies. The company currently operates retail operations in 25 cities and could scale to 200 cities with around 50,000 cars. In international markets, Cars24 holds around a 7% share of the UAE used-car market, is growing at nearly 30%, and has expanded to three Australian cities.
Financial Performance
Cars24's India entity reported an 18.3% year-on-year decline in operating revenue to ₹50.92 billion in FY26, while net loss narrowed 18.7% to ₹4.41 billion. The company had earlier said it turned adjusted EBITDA positive in the fourth quarter of FY26, reporting ₹200 million. A shift from an inventory-based model to a commission-based wholesale business contributed to changes in revenue recognition during the period.
Governance and Shareholder Liquidity
The company sees a listing as a way to provide liquidity to existing shareholders and employees while strengthening corporate governance. Makkar said an IPO is not being treated as an end goal or valuation exercise. He added that the governance stamp associated with becoming a listed entity could be a reason to pursue an offering even if alternative capital is available.
Competitive IPO Landscape
Rivals are moving in the same direction in India's growing online auto marketplace. Spinny has confidentially filed IPO papers with SEBI to raise between ₹25 billion and ₹30 billion through a fresh issue and offer for sale, targeting a 2027 listing. CarDekho's parent Girnar Software is also preparing for an initial public offering of up to ₹35 billion.
Cars24 is positioning itself for a public listing after a deliberate shift toward profitability and governance readiness. The reverse flip to India remains the immediate milestone, with draft red herring prospectus eligibility expected by April. If the schedule holds, the company could join a wave of digital auto platforms entering India's public markets in the coming year, while using primary capital to deepen its retail footprint.