Synopsis
SVF II Lightbulb Cayman, a SoftBank affiliate, sold 5.65 crore shares, or 3.25%, in Lenskart for Rs 2,873 crore through a block deal on Wednesday. The shares were sold at Rs 508.55 apiece, with Goldman Sachs, Fidelity, Quant Mutual Fund, WhiteOak Capital, and other institutional investors among the buyers. SoftBank’s stake has now fallen to 9.88%.Listen to this article in summarized format
SVF II Lightbulb Cayman, a SoftBank affiliate, sold 5.65 crore shares, or 3.25%, in Lenskart for Rs 2,873 crore through a block deal on Wednesday. The shares were sold at Rs 508.55 apiece, with Goldman Sachs, Fidelity, Quant Mutual Fund, WhiteOak Capital, and other institutional investors among the buyers. SoftBank’s stake has now fallen to 9.88%.
The transaction is another step in SoftBank’s monetisation of Lenskart, where it had already sold shares in earlier secondary transactions before the company went public. In 2023, Lenskart’s $600 million deal with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and ChrysCapital at a $4.2 billion valuation included secondary share sales worth $450-500 million, giving some of its early investors, including SoftBank, a significant pre-IPO exit window, per media reports.
For SoftBank, Lenskart is emerging as one of the best India outcomes from the 2019-21 funding cycle. At Lenskart’s IPO (initial public offer) last November, SoftBank sold shares worth Rs 1,026 crore, making over 5x returns on its investment.
In dollar terms, SoftBank has invested roughly $250-280 million in Lenskart. Through the offer-for-sale component of Lenskart's November 2025 IPO and previous secondary share sales, the Japanese investor had already realised about $200 million. The latest block deal has added another $300 million to its cash proceeds, while SoftBank continues to hold a stake in the eyewear retailer valued at around $940 million.
Even after Wednesday’s sale, SoftBank continues to sit on unrealised gains of almost Rs 9,000 crore from Lenskart.
One of the country’s most aggressive technology investors, SoftBank has backed several large Indian internet companies, but its public-market journey has been uneven. The company lost over $500 million on its investment in fintech giant Paytm, while it gained around $630 million from Policybazaar parent PB Fintech (3x returns). SoftBank also made around $100 million from Eternal, in which it got a stake after the foodtech company acquired Blinkit in 2022. SoftBank was an investor in Blinkit, which was called Grofers earlier.
However, the picture has been somewhat different of late. SoftBank’s listed India portfolio recorded more than $600 million in paper losses during the January-March 2026 quarter, led by weakness in Swiggy, Ola Electric, FirstCry, Meesho, and Delhivery, ET reported in May. Lenskart, however, partly offset the drag, underlining how India’s public markets are rewarding some new-age companies while marking down others.
The Lenskart sale also reflects a broader shift in India’s venture market. IPOs are finally giving venture and growth investors a way to return capital. In May, Peak XV Partners, Ribbit Capital, and Y Combinator booked 52-94x returns from partial stake sales in Groww after the expiry of the IPO lock-in period. They together sold 4.7% in Groww for about Rs 5,326 crore, through block deals.
Besides Lenskart, ecommerce platform Meesho, edtech firm PhyiscsWallah, furniture brand Wakefit, and fintech giants Groww and Pine Labs also listed on India’s stock exchanges last year, adding to the momentum. These companies generated banner returns for their early investors, such as Peak XV, Elevation Capital, and YCombinator, among others.
