Chatterbox mulls strategic acquisitions after making IPO history in India

New Delhi: When Chatterbox Technologies, the company behind influencer marketplace Chtrbox, debuted on the BSE SME platform, it didn’t just mark a financial milestone; it became India’s first influencer marketing company to go public, signalling a turning point for the country’s booming creator economy.

For founder, managing director, and CEO Raj Mishra, the listing isn’t just about capital; it’s about credibility and scale.

“The Indian creator economy has been exploding; it’s been a paradigm shift in the way brands have been spending. At Chatterbox, we’ve reached a strong scale and profitability position. Going public gave us the capital and credibility to accelerate our next phase of growth. Our idea is not just to scale technology and international expansion, but also to get into deeper data monetisation solutions. The IPO really acts as a catalyst for us,” Mishra said, speaking exclusively to BuzzInContent.com.

Listing on the exchange was a personal milestone, too. “Euphoric, for me,” Mishra said, recalling the day the bell rang. “I’ve been in the creator ecosystem for the last decade. As Country Head for TikTok, I set up the platform from day zero. I’ve seen the creator economy evolve from scratch to a multibillion-dollar industry. Seeing the bell-ringing ceremony was an emotional and gratifying moment for all of us who envisioned this dream. It was ecstatic, to say the least.”

Where the IPO money goes and where it won’t

For Mishra, clarity of purpose drives every financial move. “Beyond general working capital, part one of our IPO funds will go into tech and AI expansion. We’re building a robust creative analytics tool, brand matching and monitoring systems, and performance measurement tools. We want to create monetisation products that help creators build sustainable careers. Regional and global expansion is also a key focus; we’re setting up offices in Dubai, Korea, Indonesia and exploring emerging creator markets. Acquisitions and partnerships are also on the cards.”

Financial discipline remains non-negotiable. “We’ll be very financially disciplined. We won’t spend on anything that doesn’t have a clear ROI or link to business growth. The next six to twelve months are about delivering financial results because investors have trusted us. We’ll only spend on initiatives that add measurable value to the company.”

Acquisitions on cards

The company’s acquisition ambitions are strategic and timed to perfection. “The timing of M&A matters. We’re the first influencer marketing company in India to go public on the Bombay Stock Exchange. I’ve been in the industry for a long time, and our parent company is also listed in Canada. All of this strengthens our moat. Earlier, I kept M&A on hold until we had the right liquidity and growth trajectory. Now, we’re ready to acquire players who need a home and who can strengthen our position in the market.” 

Mishra also admitted that success cannot be measured by one yardstick alone. “Success for us would be a metric of how our financials and revenue look after the IPO, how diversification has come in, and how we’ve penetrated deeper into tier-two and tier-three regions and onboarded more regional creators. Also, how many top-tier talents have we’ve managed to represent exclusively. On the technology side, we want to create a strong value proposition for people who derive value from us. There are a lot of aspects to define success, but we have the big plan ready.”

India’s heartland creators in focus

If there’s one theme Mishra returns to repeatedly, it’s the power of regional creators. “Tier 2 and tier 3 creators bring authenticity and community trust. Their content is regional and relatable. Brands work with them for cultural connection, whereas metro creators are chosen for aspirational storytelling. Both have overlapping goals, but the narrative and tone differ.”

As he pointed out, the company’s mission is to go deeper into Bharat. “Success for us would be a metric of how we’ve penetrated deeper into the tier-two and tier-three regions and onboarded more regional creators.”

This approach is rooted in Chatterbox’s scale and experience. “We’ve worked with about 300,000 creators across nano, micro, macro, and celebrity tiers. The goal is not just quantity but quality, helping creators of all sizes find sustainable income. We’ll incubate emerging creators across languages and regions and help them grow into stars.”

Mishra believes that this democratisation of content creation is reshaping the Indian internet. “Hundreds of thousands of creators join the ecosystem every year. It’s like a hierarchy; top creators rise, and new ones keep entering. In India, around three to four million content creators are monetising; that’s a 300–350% increase over five years. The influx will continue because people see it as a sustainable, lucrative career.”

Beyond borders

While Chatterbox’s base remains in India, its vision extends far beyond. Mishra revealed the company already draws a notable chunk of revenue from overseas operations. “Around 10–15% of our revenue currently comes from cross-border markets, and that will increase as we expand into Dubai, Indonesia, Brazil, and South Korea.”

Operating across markets, however, demands cultural sensitivity. “The creator economy works differently across regions. Pricing points and brand spends vary by market. We have to respect cultural nuances and identify creators who resonate locally. I’ve launched TikTok in India, Indonesia, Seoul, and Brazil, so I understand these dynamics. It’s about being strategic and adaptive.”

Striking the balance between brand budgets and creator payouts

For a company straddling both brand and talent relationships, balancing cash flows is a challenge. “It’s a chicken-and-egg situation. Creators want quick payments, but brands often take 60–90 days. If there’s a way to fast-track payouts while we wait for brand payments, we’ll do it. My priority is to keep creators sorted. Big brands have fixed payment cycles, but if we can facilitate early payouts from our side, we will.”

And where does his loyalty lie? Mishra doesn’t hesitate. “Personally, I side with the creators; they’re the ones putting in the work and creating the content. It’s not fair for them to face liquidity issues. We want to empower creators to get more deals without worrying about delayed payments.”

“We want to ensure both sides are happy and maintain parity between the brand and creator. It’s all case-by-case,” he added.

Market growth amid competition

The listing has inevitably made Chatterbox a reference point for others in the industry. But Mishra sees competition as a sign of maturity, not a threat. “The industry is growing at 25–30% CAGR; it’s already a Rs 3,000–4,000 crore business in India and much bigger globally. One company can’t serve the entire market. Everyone can coexist and curate their own value proposition. We’re going full throttle, aggressive expansion and scale, but what will matter is how we differentiate ourselves through service offerings, value, and stakeholder perception.”

Building a more resilient creator ecosystem

The influencer economy is fast, volatile, and algorithm-driven. Mishra acknowledged this reality but sees opportunity in adaptation. “There’s nothing that really worries me, except for how quickly platform algorithms can change. That can shift audience behaviour overnight. The key is to stay platform-agnostic and diversify revenue through long-term IPs, tech products, and creator-led commerce. The challenge is keeping our creators relevant and visible in an evolving market. Beyond that, I think it’s a great space to be in.”

That ethos carries into his vision for creator wellbeing. “Western ecosystems take creator mental health seriously, that’s something we plan to build at Chatterbox. We want to ensure our creators don’t burn out and feel valued and supported long-term.”

The future of content

As India’s creator landscape expands, one format rules them all. “Short-form, snackable content continues to dominate. Reels, Shorts, and BTS-style videos are performing best because attention spans are shrinking. Authentic, raw content works better than polished perfection. Anything non-relatable won’t work in the long run, relatability and engagement are everything.”

Instagram, in particular, remains the heartbeat of creator culture. “There’s been a major influx of creators on Instagram. The platform keeps tweaking algorithms to help emerging creators find visibility. It’s become more competitive, and creators need structured guidance.”

Artificial Intelligence sits at the core of Chatterbox’s next growth phase. “AI is a huge enabler for us. We use it for creative brand matching, predictive campaign performance, and content optimisation. We’re building our proprietary tool as well, which will power our next phase of growth and help drive higher ROI for brands.”