Accel India, 360 ONE Group sell over 4% stake in BlueStone for Rs 513 crore

Venture capital firm Accel India and 360 ONE Group sold a little over 4% stake in omnichannel jewellery retailer BlueStone for Rs 513 crore through separate block deals on the BSE.

The two investors sold a combined 61.98 lakh shares on Thursday, representing a 4.07% stake in Bengaluru-based BlueStone Jewellery and Lifestyle, according to exchange data.

Accel India, through its affiliate Accel India III (Mauritius) Ltd, sold 28 lakh shares, or a 1.84% stake, while 360 ONE Group, through its funds, offloaded 33.98 lakh shares or a 2.23% stake in the jewellery retailer.


The transactions were executed at an average price of Rs 827.60 per share, taking the deal value to Rs 513 crore.

With the latest transaction, Accel's holding through its affiliates declined to 8.71% from 10.55%.

The shares, however, found buyers among a mix of domestic and overseas institutional investors, who acquired an equal number of shares at the same price.

Mutual Funds managed by Mirae Asset, Nippon India, and Bandhan, along with Bajaj Life Insurance, participated in the transaction.

In addition, SBI Life Insurance also bought over 9.5 lakh shares, or a 0.6% stake for Rs 79 crore, raising its stake in the jewellery retailer to 5.02% from 4.4%.

Goldman Sachs, Citigroup Global Markets Singapore and sovereign wealth fund Kuwait Investment Authority were among the foreign investors participating in the transaction.

The stock of BlueStone Jewellery and Lifestyle on Friday fell 1.48% to trade at Rs 793.10 per share on the BSE.

The stake sale follows a stronger first-quarter performance by BlueStone.

In July, the company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 5.96 crore for the April-June quarter, compared with a net loss of Rs 34.74 crore a year ago.

Its total income rose 49% to Rs 751.81 crore, while expenses increased to Rs 744.82 crore from Rs 538.45 crore.

The latest selloff marks the second round of stake sales by the investors this year.

In June, Accel, 360 ONE and IvyCap Ventures had sold shares of BlueStone for nearly Rs 243 crore.

Founded in 2011 by Gaurav Singh Kushwaha and Vidya Nataraj, BlueStone offers more than 8,000 designs across rings, pendants, earrings and competes with Titan's CaratLane, GIVA and other jewellery brands. PTI