Rakuten Keep the sails folded Capify. Japanese giant It has just sold Francisco Riberas at a significant lossco-founder of Gestamp and one of Spain’s greatest fortunes, the Convertible bonds worth more than 36 million euros were subscribed to the startup Founded by Juan de Antonio. By recording losses of more than 17 million due to the discount you subscribe to. This is a debt that was signed years ago and which the Asian multinational has refused to implement to avoid expanding its shareholding position.
long ago, The Spanish startup’s largest shareholder is exploring the market to carry out a shareholder exit It reached more than 47% with an investment of more than 230 million euros. A sign of its intention not to keep its bet was specifically its position on the convertible debt it had accumulated with the Spanish subsidiary of the technology company. As La Información moved forward, they ruled out executing those bonds and holding more securities, even if this measure allowed them to implement a discount of more than 25% compared to the €1,400 million valuation set in 2018.
Now, according to official documents from one of Rakuten’s companies in Luxembourg, The company decided to dispose of these loans. The recipient is the startup’s new business ally: Francisco Riberas. On June 30, he sold those securities, which amounted to practically 40 million euros – after increased interest – to Aurela Asset Management, the holding company of the Spanish businessman. The latter paid 24.2 million euros. This means that the Japanese Losses of $17.6 million were recorded on its balance sheet.
The reason that explains this is none other than the interest rate that accrues on these two loans. These started at €36 million. They are logged in The two transactions were signed in August and November 2017the year in which the startup raised more than 100 million euros in a round with Rakuten itself and with the Spanish fund Seaya Ventures. In 2019, 6.3 million euros were paid. But the bill increased due to interest, which reached 10% in 2020 and 12% starting in 2021. In 2022, refinancing was carried out, setting the last 12% for the two financing tranches.
Now, these are the credits Francisco Riberas assumes it through his origins, which also included other companies such as Wallbox. He already became a shareholder in March in a capital raise in which the Public Credit Institute’s Next Tech public fund (ICO) also entered. Between them, they pumped, almost equally, more than 40 million euros. So the logical thing is to convert this debt into securities to acquire equity positions in the company..
Rakuten has been seeking an exit from Cabify for some time, without a third-party sale or IPO occurring.
This type of credit is very common in startups. It has spread more in the past year and a half, during which there has been a major modification in the sector, as it allows receiving an infusion of funds without the need to specify a valuation in order for them to be converted into securities. Loans signed with Rakuten allow this transfer to be made at a discounted rate. One is based on the valuation of the round signed in 2017 (Series D), which exceeded the €500 million mark. Another includes a 25% discount on the “price” set in 2018 (Series F), which exceeded $1.4 billion, 1.14 billion euros at the exchange rate on that date.
Rakuten, out
Rakuten is one of Cabify’s oldest contributors. It broke out in 2016 In an expansion of more than 100 million euros. From that date Invested more than 230 million euros Only in capital. It reached more than 47% of the shares, almost a majority, which forced it to transform it into a kind of “subsidiary” and not into an investing company. Little by little, the Japanese began to reduce their exposure to relocation, with their departure from many international companies. They left Asian companies GoTo and Careem (partly in the latter) and maintained a lower position in US Lyft. In Spain, it has been studying for months the possibility of offering its shares to leave permanently. At the moment, no deal has been signed beyond a convertible sale.
For this part, Riberas has remained very active in recent months in Spain’s technology and startup ecosystem. He was not an investor with a traditional technology profile. But it was supporting projects related to mobility. First it was at the manufacturer of electric car chargers Square wallIt exceeded 9% after leading the recent increase of 45 million. In this company, listed on the American Stock Exchange, he is on the board of directors with Seaya Ventures, the relevant partner of Cabify. Finally, he arrived in the first part of this year, although his position is unknown. He also entered I’m burning next to Die Madrileña -Another Cabify shareholder- in a $10M round.
No IPO, no sale
Cabify has been looking for financing alternatives, after the mega round negotiated in 2019 did not come to fruition – with Rakuten owning more than 45% on that date. He did so first by selling shares he controlled in Glovo which gave him nearly €50 million just before the pandemic hit. Then came a loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) of $40 million to electrify 1,400 cars in its own fleet. Finally, there is the round at the beginning of this year, along with the appearance of Mutua Madrileña’s contribution in 2022. In this expansion, Rakuten has not made a move.
The startup, which claims to have ended 2022 with a turnover of 625 million euros and operating slight losses, I’ve thought about going public (IPO) was conducted on several occasions during this time, but was eventually cancelled. The CEO has always called it an “option.” He was there too Possible purchasing methods in the past. A takeover bid worth almost €2,000 million was rejected in 2018 because the payment was, above all, in shares rather than cash. The company still has a large shareholder base that includes everyone from Seaya Ventures itself to individual investors like the entrepreneur Rosaro Faro.
