Tonbo Imaging India Limited, a global defence electronics original equipment manufacturer (OEM), has received approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to launch its proposed initial public offering (IPO). The proposed IPO will comprise an offer for sale (OFS) of up to 18,085,246 equity shares with a face value of Rs 2 each.

The OFS will include shares offered by the promoter selling shareholders, a promoter group selling shareholder and investor selling shareholders. From defence pivot to global footprintFounded in 2003, Tonbo Imaging shifted its focus towards defence product manufacturing in 2012 after its promoters acquired the erstwhile parent company.

The company is promoted by Arvind Kondangi Lakshmikumar, Ankit Kumar and Cecilia D’Souza, who have worked together for more than 21 years across global defence programmes, product engineering, research and development, capital raising and international business. The company counts Qualcomm Ventures, Artiman, Celesta, Edelweiss Value and Growth Fund, HBL Engineering, Tenacity Ventures, Export-Import Bank of India and Florintree, among others, as its investors.

According to the Frost & Sullivan (F&S) report cited in the company's draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), Tonbo Imaging was the largest manufacturer by sales value of thermal imaging systems supplied to government and defence agencies in India during FY24-FY26. 3% of India's thermal imaging exports by units during the same period, according to the report.

As of March 31, 2026, Tonbo had more than 28,000 systems deployed across 24 countries. Its product portfolio includes thermal imaging cores, weapon sights, thermal binoculars, targeting systems, missile seekers, fire-control systems and missile-guidance systems.

Asset-light manufacturing modelTonbo has owned 100% of its intellectual property since FY24, covering optics, embedded software and electronics. The company follows an asset-light manufacturing model, outsourcing production to certified electronics manufacturing services (EMS) partners, including Kaynes Technology India and Avalon Technology.

Prototype development, system integration and qualification testing, however, are carried out in-house. JM Financial Limited and IIFL Capital Services Limited are the book-running lead managers to the issue.

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