SEBI clears Cult.fit IPO: Rs 950 crore fresh issue, Bansal and Hrithik to sell shares

Fitness company Cult.fit has received the go-ahead from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its initial public offering. SEBI issued its final observations on the company's draft prospectus on Monday, October 12, 2026, according to the regulator's processing status, about three months after Cult.fit, formerly CureFit Healthcare, filed its draft red herring prospectus in July. The IPO will include a fresh issue of shares worth up to Rs 950 crore and an offer for sale of up to 17.86 crore shares by existing shareholders, among them co-founder Mukesh Bansal and actor Hrithik Roshan. The company has not yet announced a price band, dates or the total size of the issue, though media estimates put the overall offer at about Rs 3,500 crore to Rs 4,000 crore. SEBI also cleared IPO plans of three other companies in the same batch.

Cult.fit's IPO would take a large Indian fitness start-up to the stock market. For investors, it offers a listed way to back the business of gyms, fitness classes and sports gear. For the start-up ecosystem, a successful listing would show that consumer businesses beyond e-commerce and fintech can reach public markets.

The numbers show a company moving towards profitability but not there yet. Its net loss nearly halved in FY26, to about Rs 252 crore from about Rs 481 crore, while revenue grew strongly; reports put FY26 operating revenue at about Rs 1,720 crore, though they differ on the exact growth rate. A large part of its network is now run through franchise or marketplace arrangements, which lets the company expand with less of its own capital.

The draft prospectus also points to risks investors should weigh. It says four metro markets, Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad, contributed more than 90 per cent of its services revenue in FY26, which makes the business heavily dependent on a few cities. The money from the fresh issue is meant for repaying debt, opening new fitness centres, setting up exclusive outlets for its Cultsport brand, lease payments, marketing and general corporate purposes.

A large part of the issue will be an offer for sale, which means that money goes to selling shareholders, not to the company. Early backers and founders using the IPO to sell part of their stakes is common, but investors will look at how much fresh money the company itself raises against how much is cashed out.

Short-term: With SEBI's nod, Cult.fit can now fix the timing, price band and final size of the issue, subject to market conditions. A pre-IPO placement may come first.

Long-term: A listing would give the company capital to expand beyond its main metros and test investor appetite for consumer fitness businesses. Its performance after listing will shape how other consumer start-ups approach public markets.

Who is affected: Cult.fit's members, employees and franchise partners, its early investors and founders, retail and institutional investors considering the IPO, and other consumer start-ups planning to list.

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