Influencer marketing company Chtrbox files for SME IPO in India

New Delhi: QYOU Media has announced that its subsidiary, Chatterbox Technologies (Chtrbox) has filed a Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) on the SME platform of the BSE.

The initial public offering (IPO) of up to Rs 3,727,200 equity shares will have a final issue price to be determined through the Book Building Process via QIB participation. The equity shares offered through the DRHP are proposed to be listed on the BSE.

The IPO is being made under Rule 19(2)(b) of the Securities Contract (Regulation) Rules, 1957 through Book Building Process in accordance with Regulation 229 (2) and 253 (1) of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (ICDR) Regulations.

The company will now enter into the process of seeking regulatory approval. The Book Building Process, wherein not more than 50% of the Net Issue shall be allocated on a proportionate basis to Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIBs), provided that the Company may, in consultation with the Book Running Lead Manager, allocate up to 60% of the QIB Portion to anchor investors on a discretionary basis in accordance with the SEBI ICDR Regulations (Anchor Investor Portion).

Of this one-third shall be reserved for domestic mutual funds, subject to valid bids being received from domestic mutual funds at or above the Anchor Investor Allocation Price.

Further, not less than 15% of the Net Issue shall be available for allocation on a proportionate basis to Non-Institutional Bidders and not less than 35% of the Net Issue shall be available for allocation to Retail Individual Bidders in accordance with the SEBI ICDR Regulations, subject to valid Bids being received at or above the Issue Price.

Curt Marvis, CEO and Co-Founder, QYOU Media commented, "Our team in India has been working diligently on this project for many months. All QYOU Media shareholders should be extremely proud of this accomplishment as it marks the beginning of our journey to become a leading publicly listed SME company in the influencer marketing space in India. This is something we have aspired to achieve for the last few years and we are now moving forward to make this a reality."

Raj Mishra, CEO and Managing Director, Chtrbox, said, "As the first publicly listed company in India specifically focused on the influencer marketing business segment and with the influencer landscape becoming more crowded and diverse, the ability to quickly and accurately discover influencers with the right audience demographic and engagement metrics becomes increasingly valuable. This listing process becomes a significant goal to help us achieve the growth of the overall business."

Chtrbox is an influencer and marketing platform agency in India, connecting brands or products and social media influencers. As of now the company primarily operates in India, with HQ in Mumbai and team members in other cities in India. The company has rendered services outside India in international markets like Singapore, UAE, USA and UK. 

The global influencer marketing platform market size is expected to be worth around $306.9 billion by 2033, from $16.2 billion in 2023, growing at a CAGR of 34.2% during the forecast period from 2024 to 2033.

In addition, QYOU Media has announced a Non-Brokered Private Placement Offering of up to 50 million Units of the Company at a price of $0.04 per unit for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $2 million, with an ultimate maximum of $57.5 million units for aggregate gross proceeds of $2.3 million.

Each unit will comprise one common share in the capital of the company and three quarters of one (3/4) common share purchase warrant of the company. Each warrant will entitle the holder thereof to purchase one common share at a price of $0.06 per common share until February 28, 2027.

The company requires the net proceeds of the offering to support QYOU Media, Inc. expenses related to the transaction and anticipates they will be used primarily for legal, accounting and consulting fees along with final earnout payments from the original acquisition of Chtrbox by QYOU Media due to founding investors.

The Offering is expected to close on or about February 28, 2025, or such other date as the company may determine and is subject to certain conditions including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary approvals, including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

The common shares partially comprising the units and the common shares underlying the warrants will be subject to a four-month plus one-day hold period commencing on the day of the closing of the Offering, pursuant to applicable Canadian securities laws.

The units issued pursuant to the offering have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the US Securities Act) or any state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold to, or for the account or benefit of, persons in the United States or US persons absent registration under the US Securities Act and all applicable state securities laws or compliance with the requirements of an exemption therefrom.