The eyewear store announced that Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), a sovereign wealth fund of the Gulf emirate, had inked agreements to invest $500 million (about Rs. 4,000 crore) in Lenskart. Without identifying the shareholders who will be selling their shares or the breakdown of the amount to be invested through each method, Lenskart stated that ADIA will invest through the purchase of both primary and secondary shares.

The sovereign wealth fund has invested in the New Delhi-based startup at the same valuation of $4.5 billion as its last round last year. After the deal is completed, Lenskart will have raised about $750 million in cash over the previous 12 months, including recent fund-raising efforts. The eyeglasses company has so far received $1.5 billion in initial and follow-on financing.

The deal is said to be the biggest funding round in about a year in India's startup ecosystem after Dailyhunt's $800 million raise in April 2022. Lenskart also said that its revenue grew by 60% for the second year in a row and that it is now profitable. In FY22, the company slipped into a net loss of Rs 102.3 crore from a net profit of about Rs 29 crore in FY21.

The eyewear company, which is run by Lenskart Solutions Pvt. Ltd., recorded a nearly 66% year-over-year increase in its income from operations at Rs 1,502.7 crore vs Rs 905 crore. The business announced that it will use the new funding to expand its presence in Asia and the Middle East. With more than 2,000 locations as of right now, Lenskart has 1,500 in India and the remaining in Southeast Asia and the Middle East.

Lenskart said the new factory will be important for manufacturing 20 million pieces of eyewear, which it plans to ship next year. Lenskart was working on plans to shift its entire manufacturing in Southeast Asia, including those of Japan's Owndays, to its largest manufacturing facility in Bhiwadi, Rajasthan. Lenskart had picked up a controlling stake in Japanese direct-to-consumer eyewear brand Owndays in June, in a bid to place itself as one of the largest omnichannel players in the category in Asia.

Lenskart and its stockholders had only one financial advisor, Avendus Capital. EY served as ADIA's accounting and tax advisors, and AZB & Partners and Allen & Overy served as the organization's legal counsel. KPMG, PwC, and Rajaram Legal & Khaitan & Co. served as the company's and its shareholders' accounting and tax advisors, respectively.