Belgium-headquartered Sofina Ventures SA has completed a significant divestment in Honasa Consumer, the parent company of the popular Mamaearth brand. According to bulk deals data, the venture capital firm sold 41.78 lakh shares representing a 1.28 percent stake in the company for ₹177.2 crore via open market transaction on June 25. The selling price was set at ₹424.07 per share, representing a 1.5% premium over the stock's closing price of ₹417.7 on the BSE. The identity of the buyers could not be immediately ascertained from exchange disclosures.
As of March 2026, Sofina Ventures was holding a 3.29 percent equity stake in the Varun Alagh and Ghazal Alagh-founded Honasa Consumer. The transaction represents a substantial reduction in the Belgium-based firm's holdings in the Gurugram-based consumer goods company. The Belgian-based investment firm first backed Honasa Consumer when it led its $50 million funding round in 2021. It partially exited its stake during Honasa's IPO in November 2023 and further trimmed its holdings through block deals in June 2024, making this the latest in a series of strategic exits from the company.
The stake sale by Sofina Ventures reflects a broader trend of early investors in Indian startups offloading shares in recent weeks. According to market reports, prominent Indian startup investors including SoftBank, Alpha Wave Ventures, Actis, Peak XV, Elevation Capital, and Tencent have been cashing in on their investments in new-age tech companies like Paytm, Lenskart, Pine Labs, and Delhivery in recent months. For instance, Shadowfax's early backer Mirae Asset offloaded a stake worth ₹120 crore just yesterday, while companies like Pine Labs and Delhivery have also seen multiple block deals materialize within the current week. However, primary capital infusion for the Indian startup ecosystem has been steadily picking up, with Indian startups raising $427.1 million between June 15 and 19, marking a 76% uptick from $242.6 million raised in the preceding week.
The latest stake sale comes amid a period of strategic transformation for Honasa Consumer after reporting robust financials for the fiscal year FY26. Earlier this week, the company announced the acquisition of a 58% stake in nutraceuticals company Fluence Pharma for ₹135 crore, marking its entry into the fast-growing nutrition and supplements segment. The acquisition aligns with Honasa's recently unveiled "Honasa 3.0" strategy, under which the company aims to more than double its revenue to over ₹5,500 crore by FY31 while expanding EBITDA margins beyond 15%. Buoyed by strong business performance, Honasa's shares have been rallying this year, gaining about 42% on a year-to-date basis and touching a 52-week high of ₹437.90 earlier this month.
For Sofina Ventures, the stake sale in Honasa Consumer comes amid a renewed focus on the world's third-largest startup ecosystem. Earlier this month, the investor co-led the $55 million Series B round of FirstClub and had also backed IPO-bound D2C brand The Whole Truth earlier this year. The transaction involved nearly 1.28% stake in Honasa Consumer, the parent company of D2C beauty and personal care brands including Mamaearth, The Derma Co, Aqualogica, BBlunt and Dr. Sheth's. The Belgian-based investment firm's exit strategy reflects the broader trend of early investors monetizing their stakes in Indian startups that have matured and listed on the bourses.
