Awign, the Indian work-as-a-service platform, has been acquired by Mynavi Corporation in an all-cash deal. This is probably the first-ever cross-border deal of this scale in the HR tech sector in the past 20 years. With this partnership, some of Awign’s early investors, such as Capria, Lumis, MSDF, Amicus Capital and Pankaj Bansal will no longer be present in the scene.
Mynavi, a Japanese HR tech platform brings market exposure and access to a diverse demographic, reinforcing Awign’s position in India’s work-fulfillment sector. Moreover, this partnership and the patient capital will further enable Awign to focus on long-term strategic growth and deeper value creation without getting affected by the fundraising market environment. The company has offices in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Poland, India and the US.
Awign, on the other hand, was launched in 2016 by IIT alumni Annanya Sarthak, Gurpreet S. Khurana and Praveen Kumar Sah. The work-as-a-service platform boasts a robust network of over 1.5 million gig partners and collaborates with over 175 leading enterprises.
This acquisition deal saw IndigoEdge, Anoma Legal and Aeka Advisors advising Awign along with their existing investors whereas Deloitte, Anderson Mori &Tomotsune LPC and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas advised Mynavi.
Annanya Sarthak, co-founder and CEO, Awign, is confident that this acquisition will help the company embark on its “journey to becoming one of the largest HR-tech companies in India and outside.”
According to Sarthak, ever since the pandemic, the Work-As-A-Service concept has evolved and Awign has a deep understanding of the space. Digital transformation has only further helped Awign become a “market leader and value creator in this space”.
Through this partnership, Awign will be able to “scale its operations and go beyond its core strengths” with the “primary focus on strengthening our growth engine by onboarding enterprise customers worldwide and launching new categories in the HR space.”
Hidekazu Ito, managing director, Mynavi Solutions India, a subsidiary of Mynavi Corporation, feels that this “alliance with Awign is not just strategic but also a reflection of our shared commitment to making a significant social impact”. According to Ito, “The synergy between our visions, empowers us to tackle the challenges in the HR sector more effectively.”
With its presence in India, Mynavi wishes “to encourage India’s growth and create shared value.”
Not only will this partnership build a power team of best-suited talent, but it will enhance brand visibility both in India and internationally, investing in technology to expand its digital infrastructure and build better platforms. This will further help Awign onboard and serve more global enterprise customers.
It is pertinent to mention here that Awign collaborates with enterprises in various sectors—retail, FMCG, automotive, education, manufacturing, construction, pharmaceuticals and more—and specialises in streamlining work processes, ensuring high-quality outputs and managing costs effectively for large organisations.