Falguni Nayar, the founder of Indian beauty and fashion startup Nykaa, became the country's seventh woman billionaire in an ongoing initial public offering (IPO) boom on Wednesday. She has also become the wealthiest self-made billionaire.
The founder is now worth about $6.5 billion, as shares of the e-commerce firm surged as much as 89 percent when they began trading on Wednesday.
Launched in 2012, the company sells beauty, wellness, and fashion products across websites, mobile apps, and has 76 offline stores.
"I hope the Nykaa journey – an Indian-born, Indian-owned, and Indian-managed dream-come-true – can inspire each of you", Nayar said at the listing ceremony on Wednesday.
Nykaa's parent entity FSN E-Commerce Ventures hit the Indian stock exchange becoming the country's first woman-led unicorn to do so.
According to reports, it priced its initial public offering (IPO) at the top end of a marketed range, raising 53.5 billion rupees ($722 million). By 10:36 a.m. (IST) in Mumbai, the stock was up 78 percent.
According to the company's filing report, its sales surged 35 percent to $330 million in the last financial year.