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Lenskart, the $6.1 billion eyewear giant gearing up for its IPO, has just made a major move in its boardroom — and it’s raising eyebrows across the Indian
Lenskart, the $6.1 billion eyewear giant gearing up for its IPO, has just made a major move in its boardroom — and it’s raising eyebrows across the Indian startup world.
SoftBank’s Sumer Juneja has officially stepped down from the board, while two new heavy-hitters are stepping in: Ashish Kashyap, founder of INDmoney and former CEO of Ibibo Group, and Sayali Karanjkar, co-founder of digital lending platform PaySense.
The appointments were approved during Lenskart’s Annual General Meeting held on July 26 and are part of the company’s efforts to strengthen its corporate governance ahead of its public listing.
The addition of independent directors is no coincidence. As Lenskart inches closer to a blockbuster IPO, it’s making strategic changes to align with public market norms.
Ashish Kashyap and Sayali Karanjkar bring decades of experience across fintech, consumer internet, and tech investing. Their presence is expected to sharpen Lenskart’s oversight, operations, and strategic focus as it prepares for life as a publicly listed company.
Kashyap is a well-known figure in the Indian tech scene, having built companies like INDmoney and Ibibo. He also held leadership roles at Google and Times Internet. Sayali Karanjkar, meanwhile, scaled PaySense into one of India’s prominent digital lending startups before its acquisition by PayU in 2020. She has also served in key roles at ElasticRun and as a board member at CMS Info Systems and MobiKwik.
More recently, she has become an active investor in fintech and SaaS startups like Kiwi, Scapia, Xflow, Nimbbl, and Inai — giving her a well-rounded view of both operations and capital markets.
The two new directors will join a board already stacked with industry veterans:
With this lineup, Lenskart is building a board that blends entrepreneurial DNA with global business depth — a combination that signals serious intent as it eyes global markets and public investors.
Big Money in the Pipeline: Rs 2,150 Crore Fresh Issue Approved
Shareholders also approved a major funding initiative: a fresh issue of Rs 2,150 crore (approximately $250 million) as part of the IPO.
This capital is expected to fuel expansion, tech innovation, and potentially new acquisitions. With over 2,000 retail stores and a growing international footprint, Lenskart is already one of the largest eyewear retailers in Asia — and it’s only getting started.
The IPO, when it lands, is poised to be one of the most-watched tech public listings out of India in recent times.
New ESOP 2025 Plan to Reward and Retain Top Talent
To support long-term growth and retain top talent, Lenskart has rolled out ESOP 2025, a new employee stock ownership plan that includes 72.8 lakh stock options — roughly 0.43% of the company’s fully diluted equity.
Of these, 21.84 lakh options have been reserved specifically for senior employees at the general manager level and above. The options will vest over time based on performance and tenure, and will apply to employees across Lenskart and its group entities.
This move underscores Lenskart’s commitment to building long-term incentives for leadership as it transitions from private to public.
Founded in 2008, Lenskart has grown from a small eyewear e-commerce play into a vertically integrated, omnichannel powerhouse — combining online reach with massive offline retail and proprietary lens manufacturing.
Backed by a deep bench of top-tier investors including SoftBank, Temasek, Fidelity, ADIA, Alpha Wave Global, KKR, and TPG, the company was last valued at $6.1 billion after a recent mark-up by investor Fidelity in April 2025.
Its aggressive expansion into Southeast Asia and the Middle East, coupled with consistent profitability in core markets, has made it a rare startup balancing scale with financial discipline — a key signal for public market investors.
Lenskart’s boardroom changes reflect a larger trend in India’s tech ecosystem: companies are professionalizing early, building stronger governance, and preparing not just to go public — but to lead in the public markets.
With the exits of investor-nominated board members like Sumer Juneja and the entry of operator-founders like Kashyap and Karanjkar, Lenskart is showing the kind of maturity that’s now expected from India’s late-stage unicorns.
As it readies its IPO in the coming quarters, the spotlight will stay firmly on its leadership, execution, and how it balances growth with transparency.
Lenskart may have started with just lenses, but now it’s seeing the big picture — and it wants everyone to watch.
Hi guys, I’m Maria a full-time Blogger & Writer. It is a long-established fact that a reader will be distracted by the content.
Hi guys, I’m Maria a full-time Blogger & Writer. It is a long-established fact that a reader will be distracted by the content.
