December 17 2021, Colombo: The IPO of Sri Lankan multinational software solutions provider, hSenid opened on the 3rd of December 2021 and was oversubscribed in a matter of hours, receiving over 9.3 billion rupees worth of applications from 10,602 applicants, for a total subscription of 745,014,900 shares, against a total of 55,339,076 shares on offer. Thus, the offer closed at 4.30pm on the same day, oversubscribed 13.5 times. Trading on the Colombo Stock Exchange is set to commence on 21st December 2021.
This makes hSenid’s IPO one of the most oversubscribed issues in recent times, having drawn active interest from a diverse spectrum of both local and foreign investors including institutions and high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs). The successful conclusion of hSenid’s IPO makes it the first ever IT/BPM sector player to seek to be listed on the Colombo Stock Exchange, allowing the public to invest in a whole new sector of the economy, and potentially Sri Lanka’s most promising sector for future growth.
Speaking about the conclusion of the IPO, Dinesh Saparamadu – Director/Chairman at hSenid said, “It’s indeed an honour to lead the sector into the arena of raising capital through public equity issuances, and we couldn’t be happier with the outcome of the IPO. The broad-based interest we received indicates that our insight, that the investing community wants in on Sri Lanka’s IT/BPM growth potential, was right. This is likely the sector with the most amount of growth potential right now. In fact, we believe that the sector as a whole is on the cusp of the most significant expansionary phase in its history. We hope that our move to seek public investment will encourage other players to follow suit, as an IPO is a very effective way for IT companies to obtain capital and grow without relying heavily on debt, which is very important in this sector. I take this opportunity to thank all our new investors for placing their faith in us. We look forward to having them on board as we write the next chapter of our growth story and contribute towards developing the national economy.”
“Heading in to the IPO was an exciting milestone for all stakeholders of hSenid. This has not been a journey of just a few individuals but an entire network of dedicated employees, partners, advisors and well-wishers. We sincerely thank them all for working together and trusting us in our global journey towards making our mark as an indigenous multinational,” said Sampath Jayasundera – Director/CEO at hSenid Business Solutions said.
“We are also grateful for the confidence that our foreign investors have in us to bring more value and benefits to our country, with the promise to keep empowering people the world over, and we envision to bring out new opportunities for the Sri Lankan IT industry to reach it’s pinnacle.”
hSenid’s IPO comes as SLASSCOM, the apex body for Sri Lanka’s IT/BPM sector, aims to spur the sector’s export revenue growth to achieve USD 5 billion annually by 2025, while employing 200,000+ people and creating 1,000+ start-ups. With revenues already at around USD 1.7 billion and global demand for IT/BPM services is growing exponentially, hSenid believes that this is an achievable goal through broader public investment and by creating awareness about and access to foreign markets. The Company has also stated its intent to act as a leader in the space, helping to attract talent, promote education and support start-ups.
Under the guidance of the lead managers and co-managers to the issue, NDB Investment Bank and CT CLSA Capital, hSenid Business Solutions Limited successfully offered 55,339,076 ordinary voting shares to the public at a price of LKR 12.50 per share, raising close to LKR 700 million in equity capital. These funds are intended to finance product development and market development, along with strategic acquisitions in the APAC and East Africa regions. Over the past 5 years, hSenid has demonstrated robust growth in PAT, combined with exceptional performance across all other fundamental indicators.
Founded in 1997, hSenid is today a global Sri Lankan software solutions company, specializing in state-of-the-art HR solutions. hSenid software is used by local and global giants across 40 countries and multiple business sectors, with a strong presence in Asia Pacific and Africa. hSenid Business Solutions presently employs over 250 people and has contributed towards over 4,000 individual tech journeys during its 24+ year history. hSenid alumni have gone on to achieve great things and build successful careers in tech across Sri Lanka, Australia and the UK.