Shark Tank India Judge’s Eyewear Firm Lenskart Tumbles in Trading Debut

(Bloomberg) — SoftBank Group Corp.-backed Lenskart Solutions Ltd. tumbled in its Mumbai trading debut after raising 72.8 billion rupees ($821 million), fueling a debate over the sustainability of soaring Indian startup valuations.

Shares of the eyewear retailer founded by “Shark Tank India” judge Peyush Bansal fell as much as 12% to 355.70 rupees on Monday. The company was valued at 238 times last fiscal year’s earnings in its initial public offering — luring subscriptions that were 28 times the amount of shares on offer, led by institutional investors.

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The drop puts Lenskart on track to have the worst opening day for an IPO of its size this year in India, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

In recent days, social media criticism over the IPO’s valuation got so heated that DSP Asset Managers Pvt. publicly defended its investment in Lenskart. The mutual fund said the company’s business is “strong and scalable,” but conceded the deal was “expensive.”

The listing comes as India strengthens its position as a global fundraising hub, supported by deep domestic liquidity and a fast-growing retail investor base. It’s the world’s fourth-busiest IPO market this year, attracting investors seeking exposure to its expanding consumer economy. Indian debuts have raised about $16 billion so far in 2025.

Following the IPO, Lenskart commands a valuation of roughly 700 billion rupees — higher than those of established consumer companies including Colgate-Palmolive India Ltd., United Breweries Ltd., Page Industries Ltd. and one of Procter & Gamble Co.’s Indian units.

Investors in Lenskart’s IPO include funds from JPMorgan Chase & Co., Nomura Holdings Inc., Amundi SA and HSBC Holdings Plc, as well as the government of Singapore.

(Updates share price in second paragraph, context on debut performance in third.)

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