MUMBAI: India's first anti-virus software company is preparing to launch an Initial Public Offering (IPO) to fund its expansion plans in Japan and the United States.
Quick Heal Technologies, which expects to file its draft Red Herring prospectus and begin the formal listing process next year, will be the first Indian anti-virus software company to go public, The Economic Times reported Monday.
If no other technology product firm beats it to the bourses, the first software product company to list in India after iFlex - now Oracle Financial Services - went public in 2002.
Sales of the Pune-based company with a market share of 35 percent in India, valued at US $98.69 or INR 6 billion, have increased from US$ 1.643 Million or INR 100 million) a decade ago to US $32.849 million or INR 2 billion.
Quick Heal, which has six million users is striking new ground by choosing to list in India.
The biggest security software players, which include Symantec and AVG, are listed in the United States.
McAfee was also listed in the US before it was acquired by Intel in 2010 for over US $7 billion or Rs 420 billion.
Indian technology and internet companies prefer to list in the United States as it is far easier to get a higher valuation.
Travel portal Makemytrip.com and Sify-.com both took the US listing route, but Quick Heal intends to list on its home market due it greater brand recognition in India. (QNA)
