‘Desh Wapsi’: MoEngage Looks To Move Domicile To India

Joining the ‘Desh Wapsi’ brigade, customer engagement platform MoEngage is reportedly looking to shift its base to India from San Francisco.

The Goldman Sachs-backed startup is in discussions with a host of advisors and bankers about the potential move, Moneycontrol reported.

“Several SaaS companies are looking to shift base to India as it is much easier to go for an IPO here. MoEngage is in the very initial stages of shifting base to India,” a source was quoted as saying in the report.

Inc42 has reached out to MoEngage cofounder and chief executive Raviteja Dodda for comments on the development. The story will be updated based on the response.

Founded in 2014 by Dodda and Yashwanth Kumar, MoEngage helps consumer brands amplify and scale customer engagement, and it has been providing its services from startups to global enterprises.

Since its inception, the company has raised $207.38 Mn in total funding till date and counts Eight Roads Ventures, Exfinity Venture Partners, Helion Venture Partners and Matrix Partners India among its investors.

This comes at a time when a majority of startups based outside the country have started a counter-trend, known as ‘reverse flipping’, as they look to capitalise on the boom in India’s economy, access to a bigger pool of investors, better initial public offering (IPO) prospects and favourable government policies.

The headquarters’ shift is evidently a step closer to a potential public listing in India, where investors are going all-in for tech-led businesses.

Notably, ecommerce giant Flipkart, fintech unicorn Razorpay, quick commerce unicorn Zepto and fintech company Pine Labs are eyeing a ‘desh wapsi’ in 2025 ahead of their eventual public listings.

Only a day ago, fintech major Pine Labs secured the final approval from the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) to merge its Indian and Singapore entities.