Exclusive: Bluestone expands ESOP pool, COO Sudeep Nagar receives $11 Mn worth grant

Omnichannel jewellery retailer Bluestone has expanded its existing ESOP plan by adding additional employee stock options for its employees.

The board at Bluestone has passed a resolution for approval to add 42,43,312 employee stock options to its existing plan, bringing the total ESOP pool to 1,17,27,642 options, its regulatory filing accessed through the Registrar of Companies (RoC) shows.

According to Entrackr’s estimates, the newly added ESOPs are worth around Rs 245 crore or around $29 million. Out of the newly added stock options, Rs 92.6 crore ($11 million) will be granted to the company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), Sudeep Nagar. 

This addition brings the total value of Bluestone’s ESOP pool to Rs 678 crore or around $80 million. Notably, these valuations are based on the company's last funding round, where it raised around Rs 900 crore pre-IPO round led by Prosus, out of which Rs 300 crore is secondary.

Ahead of Bluestone’s IPO, Global consumer internet group Prosus values the company at $950 million, just shy of unicorn status ahead of its IPO. 

Prosus has valued its stake in BlueStone at $42 million, as per its latest annual report. The stake, held through its fund MIH Investments One B.V., represents a 4.43% ownership in the jewellery brand.

As per ET report, Bluestone is all set to join the unicorn status with secondary transactions worth Rs 300-350 crore by private wealth management arms of 360 One and Centrum Wealth. This will value the company at $1.2 billion.

In December 2024, Bluestone filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with SEBI for an IPO, comprising a fresh issue of equity shares worth up to Rs 1,000 crore and an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 2.398 crore shares, allowing a full exit for Samma Capital, IvyCap Ventures, and Kalaari Capital.

Founded in 2011, omnichannel jewellery brand BlueStone offers high-value gold and diamond jewellery, including rings, pendants, chains, and earrings, through its retail stores and online platform. As per its DRHP, the company operates over 203 stores across 86 cities.

BlueStone has raised around $262 million across multiple funding rounds from investors such as Accel, Prosus, Peak XV Partners, 360 One, Kalaari Capital, and others, according to startup data intelligence platform TheKredible.

In FY24, BlueStone’s revenue grew 64% year-on-year to Rs 1,266 crore, up from Rs 771 crore in FY23. The company also trimmed its losses by 15% during the same period, bringing them down to Rs 142 crore.