SoftBank Exits 3.25% Lenskart Stake For ₹2,873 Crore, Books 7x Return Since 2019 Investment

Japanese investment giant SoftBank has taken another significant bite out of its Lenskart holding, offloading a 3.25% stake in the eyewear retailer for ₹2,873 crore through a large open market block deal executed on June 4, 2026. SoftBank through its affiliate SVF II Lightbulb (Cayman) Ltd offloaded 5,65,00,000 shares representing a 3.25% stake in Lenskart Solutions, according to the block deal data available on the National Stock Exchange. The shares were disposed of at an average price of ₹508.55 apiece.

According to investment banking sources, the sale a fantastic 7x return for the Japanese investor on the shares sold, highlighting Lenskart’s excellent valuation trajectory since SoftBank led its Series G round in late 2019. That initial investment of $275 million, which valued Lenskart at little over $1.5 billion, now appears prescient given the company’s current position. Following the stake sale, SoftBank’s holding in Lenskart through its arm dropped to 9.88% from 13.13%.

“Japanese tech investor SoftBank Group has sold a 3.25% stake in eyewear firm Lenskart Solutions for ₹2,873 crore through an open market block deal on the NSE. Shares sold at ₹508.55 each via affiliate SVF II Lightbulb (Cayman) Ltd. SoftBank holding drops to 9.88% from 13.13%.”~PTI News

A Diverse Roster Of Domestic And Global Institutions:

The size of the block deal was easily absorbed by a highly diversified roster of marquee domestic mutual funds, insurance companies, and foreign institutional investors. Investors including WhiteOak Capital Mutual Fund, Mirae Asset MF, Kotak MF, Canara Robeco MF, ICICI Prudential MF, HDFC Life Insurance Company, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, Societe Generale, Metzler Asset Management, Goldman Sachs, Fidelity, Copthall Mauritius Investment, and the International Monetary Fund participated in the transaction.

The breadth of the purchase list which includes domestic mutual funds, life insurance, European asset managers, American investment banks, and international institutions reflects institutional confidence in Lenskart’s growth potential. A block deal of approximately ₹2,900 crore absorbed in a single session without substantial price disruption indicates solid underlying demand.

Lenskart shares had closed 1.54% lower at ₹516.15 on Wednesday. Despite Thursday’s decline following the block deal disclosure, the stock has delivered gains of more than 17% so far in 2026. The stock hit its 52-week high of ₹557.65 on April 15, 2026, while its 52-week low of ₹356.10 was recorded on November 10, 2025, shortly after its market debut.

“SoftBank offloads Lenskart shares worth Rs 2,873 Cr in block deal. The transaction was valued at approximately Rs 2,873 crore ($300 million). Several domestic and global institutional investors participated, including Goldman Sachs, Fidelity, WhiteOak Capital, and Quant Mutual Fund.”~Entrackr

Q4 FY26 Financials: Revenue Up 46% But Profits Under Pressure

The block deal landed just days after Lenskart released its quarterly financial results, giving buyers fresh data on which to base their decision. During its latest quarterly results for Q4 FY26, the company posted 46% year-on-year growth in its revenue to ₹2,516 crore with a profit of ₹204 crore.

However, the profitability picture was not entirely clean. Last month, Lenskart reported a 7.5% year-on-year decline in consolidated profit after tax to ₹203.6 crore in the March quarter due to a rise in expenses on components and inventories. The company had posted a PAT of ₹220.1 crore in the same period a year ago.

The gap between increasing revenue growth falling margins is a classic issue in retail expansion – new stores, inventory, and supply chain investment raise costs even as topline increases. For institutional investors with a long-term perspective, the 46% revenue growth is the headline; the margin compression is a near-term cost of scale that most expect to normalize as operating leverage improves.

“SoftBank has sold a 3.25% stake in Lenskart for Rs 2,873 crore, reducing its holding in the eyewear retailer to 9.88%. The block deal drew participation from several domestic and foreign institutional investors including Goldman Sachs, Fidelity and WhiteOak Capital.”~YourStory

SoftBank’s Lenskart Journey: From $1.5 Billion To A 7x Return

The story of SoftBank’s investment in Lenskart is one of the cleaner venture capital success stories in the Indian startup ecosystem. SoftBank Vision Fund invested $275 million in Lenskart’s Series G round in December 2019, valuing the company at over $1.5 billion at that point. The company had at that stage expanded to over 500 stores across more than 100 cities, with online sales still accounting for more than 60% of overall revenue.

Lenskart went public with an IPO in late October to early November 2025, with a price band of ₹382-402 per share and a target valuation of around $8 billion. The market debut on November 10, 2025 marked a transformational moment for the company and gave SoftBank and other pre-IPO investors the liquidity event they had been waiting for.

SoftBank was one of Lenskart’s largest shareholders before the company went public. The investor had also sold a portion of its holding through the offer-for-sale route during the company’s IPO. The latest transaction comes after the expiry of the mandatory lock-in period for pre-IPO shareholders.

Banking sources claim a 7x return at a block transaction price of ₹508.55, compared to an entry-adjusted cost of around ₹72-75 per share in the pre-IPO era. The arithmetic supports this figure. For SoftBank’s Vision Fund, which has come under fire for multiple disastrous portfolio bets in recent years, the Lenskart departure is exactly the type of clean, successful outcome its limited partners have been seeking.