Matrimony.com - Information Analysis

Note: This article has no recommendation to either buy or avoid this IPO. Instead, we have presented all the relevant information based on which you can make your own decision. About 30% of the population of India is within marriageable age. 11.70 million marriages took place in 2016 of which 88% were 'arranged marriages'. Internet portals accounted for just 6% of them, a drop in a very large bucket. Matrimony.com is the largest among these portals with about 3 million registered users and nearly 1 million unique visitors each month. Of course, not all of them are paid subscribers but a good number are - about 700,000 people. Matrimony is India's largest wedding portal and possibly its oldest (launched in 2001). The website has a fairly compelling pull factor. After subscribing, users can send personalized messages to other users, view verified mobile numbers, chat and in case you were wondering, compare horoscopes. For users who aren't comfortable with a wholly online experience, the company has a workforce, spread across 140 retail centers to help (incidentally called 'relationship managers'). The site also has a real time 'recommendation engine' called MMA that uses algorithms and machine learning to help users find life partners. For its numerous services, Matrimony's subscribers pay it a hefty Rs 4242 on average. The company has tried its hand at related products such as wedding gifts, venues and assorted services but hasn't seen much success with them so far. Matrimony.com is a strange beast. It made a profit of 44 crores on 293 crores of revenue in FY 2017. However, if you go back to the last four years, it made losses in each of them. It employs an astonishing 4212 people, many of whom are spread across its retail centers to help customers who aren't net savvy. Wages account for a whopping 40-50% of its costs. A festering dispute with an investor in its US operation accounted for losses in two of the past four years. The company is also facing regulatory wrangles concerning the alleged transfer of funds outside India through its promoter in contravention of the FEMA and an alleged transfer of assets to its promoter below 'fair value'. Nonetheless, you may see that the negatives outweigh the positives. Our questions will help you navigate. Wh