Captain Fresh Selects BofA and Axis Capital to Serve as Bankers for the $400 Million Public Offering

Nitin Konde, Varun Bhardwaj

Oct 26, 2024 — 2 min read

Captain Fresh Picks BofA and Axis for $400 Million IPO

According to various media reports, Captain Fresh, a business-to-business seafood company, has chosen Axis Capital and BofA to serve as its bankers for its anticipated initial public offering (IPO) in 2025. The company's initial public offering (IPO) aims to raise $350–400 million, of which about half will come from new shares and the other half from the offer for sale (OFS) component.

Captain Fresh is considering a valuation of between $1.3 and $1.5 billion for its public market debut. In addition to helping businesses buy fresh produce, the company also helps them with processing and distribution. It also engages in the fish and seafood sector. Established in 2019 by Utham Gowda, the company has raised more than $160 million from a number of investors, including Accel, Tiger Global, Prosus, and SBI Investment.

The Company is Yet to Decide on Additional Bankers

The most likely bankers are Axis Capital and BofA, but Captain Fresh will include one or two more in its final IPO syndicate. The final names will be determined over the next few weeks as the corporation continues to debate whether it wants two international and one domestic banker or two international and two local ones.

At least eight or nine lenders have contacted Captain Fresh in the last month or so, and it's probable that the final one or two names will be one of them. The filing is anticipated in the first half of 2025, and the formal work will start soon. If all goes according to plan, the company will list on the exchanges in the second half of 2025.

Fundraising prior to an IPO

The business is getting ready to raise capital in a pre-IPO transaction even as it gets ready to list the following year. Accel, an existing investor, is leading the company's efforts to raise $50–60 million in a new round. The round will likely be priced by Accel, but other current investors like Tiger, BII, and Prosus will also take part.

Although talks are still in progress, Captain Fresh is anticipated to be valued at over $800 million in the next round, a significant increase from the $500 million it was originally valued at due to its robust profit profile and company expansion. The company's history of successful acquisitions supports its position as well.

In an effort to strengthen its hold on the fish and other allied meat markets, the company has purchased at least three foreign seafood businesses. Illinois-based CenSea, Poland's Koral, and Indonesia's Fishlog, according to information from private markets data source Tracxn. Captain Fresh's pre-IPO round size will be significantly larger than the $50–60 million it is raising in this round. It will be spread out over three to four rounds, with outside investors joining later.