Midas Touch

Abhishek Gupta has made a significant contributions to the growth and success of OYO. His strategic financial expertise and leadership have essentially helped shape OYO’s business and drive it towards achieving its objectives. One of Gupta’s key contributions to OYO has been his role as a strategic partner to the CEO. He has played a crucial role in developing and executing financial strategies that align with the organisation’s vision and business objectives. By focusing on compounding market share through disciplined capital allocation in core markets, Gupta has helped OYO establish a strong presence in regions such as India, Southeast Asia, and Europe. 

Under his guidance, OYO has experienced significant growth in its supply footprint. He has spearheaded the company’s inorganic growth strategy, leading multiple acquisitions of leading vacation rental companies in Europe. These acquisitions have not only expanded OYO’s business in the region but also strengthened its position as a global player in the hospitality industry. The total transaction value of these acquisitions is estimated to be around USD 500 million, demonstrating Gupta’s ability to drive growth through strategic investments. 

By transforming the company into an operating profit-making entity in the first clean quarter post-Covid, Gupta achieved a remarkable feat that few newage tech companies have accomplished. This achievement was largely attributed to his relentless focus on cost optimisation initiatives, which resulted in a significant reduction of fixed costs by approximately 65 per cent between FY20 and FY21. 

Gupta’s role in capital raising has been instrumental in supporting OYO’s global business growth. He successfully helped raise approximately USD 2.2 billion in equity capital from renowned global institutional investors such as Softbank, Lightspeed, Sequoia, Airbnb and Microsoft. This capital infusion provided OYO with the necessary financial resources to drive its expansion plans and solidify its position in the market. Additionally, he played a key role in securing over USD 1 billion in debt capital, further strengthening OYO’s financial position. 

Gupta led the financial turnaround of the company, culminating in the achievement of the first-ever profitable quarter in Q1FY23, with an EBITDA of Rs 10.6 crore. This turnaround is particularly noteworthy considering the challenges faced by the hospitality industry during the pandemic. Additionally, Gupta’s focus on unit economics and optimisation of operating costs has resulted in sustained increase in gross margins and a significant reduction in fixed costs.