Oyo, the hotel startup known as SoftBank's 'jewel in India,' has laid off 1,800, becoming the 3rd SoftBank-backed company to cut jobs this week
- India's budget hotel chain Oyo has laid off thousands of employees across China and India, according to a report in Bloomberg.
- Oyo is the third company in SoftBank's portfolio to jettison jobs this week, following the layoffs at Zume and Getaround.
- Oyo has raised more than $3 billion in capital, though the last fundraise included $700 million from its young chief executive, Ritesh Agarwal.
- Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.
Oyo, a budget hotel chain that's backed by SoftBank, is letting go of 1,800 employees across China and India, according to a report in Bloomberg.
The startup has laid off 5% of its staff in China and another 12% of employees in India, as part of a reorganization, a source with knowledge of the situation told Bloomberg. It expects to cut an additional 1,2000 jobs in India, where it's based, in the next several months.
Oyo is the third company in SoftBank's portfolio to jettison jobs this week, following the layoffs at robotic pizza startup Zume and car rental company Getaround.
The company lets people book hotel rooms in more than 80 countries through its app. It turns struggling local hotels into Oyo franchises, puts up some money to redecorate and make sure the wireless internet is working, and takes a cut on every booking.
Oyo has raised more than $3 billion in capital, though the last fundraise included $700 million from its young chief executive, Ritesh Agarwal. He bought back shares from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners and Sequoia Capital, as part of a deal that raised Oyo's valuation to $10 billion. SoftBank has been pumping money into the company since 2015.
The startup has been called "SoftBank's jewel in India" for being one of the country's most valuable private companies, though a recent report in The New York Times said its growth has been accelerated by questionable business practices. An investigation showed that Oyo rented thousands of rooms at unlicensed hotels and guesthouses and let police and other officials use the service for free to avoid trouble with the authorities.
Oyo's press office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Do you work at Oyo or another SoftBank-backed startup and want to share your story? Contact this reporter via email at mrussell@businessinsider.com or Twitter DM at @meliarobin.