SaaS giant Freshworks makes stellar debut on NASDAQ, raises $1.03Bn at $36/share

Freshworks, Salesforce rival, has become the first Indian SaaS to list on NASDAQ, setting a precedent for others from the country to reap benefits from the flourishing US investor markets.

The company had intended to raise $969 million at the top end of its increased price range of $32 to $34 per share, seeking a $9Bn valuation. However, surprisingly, it managed to raise $1.03Bn, by selling 28.5 million shares at $36 per share. Thus, Freshworks was valued at $10.13Bn, making it one of the biggest startups in India and a prestigious member of the country’s decacorn startup club.

In response to this stellar opening, the company’s founder and CEO Girish Mathrubootham tweeted:

Today is a dream come true for me – from humble beginnings in #Trichy to ringing the bell at @Nasdaq for the FreshWorks IPO. Thank you to our employees, customers, partners, and investors for believing in this dream. #Freshworks #IPO #NASDAQ pic.twitter.com/fXz73YxXXR

— Girish Mathrubootham (@mrgirish) September 22, 2021

Freshworks allows businesses to better deal with customer management, offering solutions like a messaging platform, artificial-intelligence-powered chatbot for customer support, etc.  Its suite of affordable, quick-to-implement business software tools ranges from CRM to help-desk software and has expanded its product offering in recent times.

With hybrid work becoming the new face of business, companies like Freshworks have been growing at a massive rate, which is why it was able to get to the front of the queue of companies that are looking to go public in US, and justify this massive valuation. Businesses have been trying to make work from home more convenient, while making sure that productivity remains the same. Freshworks, which was founded in India and is now based in California, is one of the biggest business software firms in the world, and thus, it’s no surprise why its IPO exceeded all expecations.

The company had said that it would use the capital for general corporate purposes, including working capital, operating expenses, and capital expenditures, and for funding acquisitions.

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