Zepto raises $665 million at a $3.6 billion valuation

MUMBAI: Quick commerce firm Zepto has bagged a fresh $665 million from investors at a valuation of $3.6 billion. The funding which underlines growing investor appetite for instant deliveries comes barely nine months after the Mumbai-based firm pocketed $235 million from investors at a valuation of $1.4 billion, joining the league of unicorn startups.
Through the fresh funding, Avenir, Lightspeed, and Avra (Anu Hariharan’s new fund) joined the company’s cap table as new investors, among others. Existing investors Glade Brook, Nexus, and StepStone co-led the round with Goodwater and Lachy Groom doubling down as well, the company said in a statement on Friday.
The development comes at a time when competition in the quick commerce space is set to intensify with the entry of deep-pocketed players like Walmart’s Flipkart and Reliance’s JioMart. At present, Zomato’s Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart and Zepto are the three main market players vying for a larger share of consumer wallet.
Zepto, which is planning to go public, claimed that its GMV (gross merchandise value) has grown year-on-year to over $1 billion and about 75% of the company’s dark stores are EBITDA positive as of May 2024. The timeline for the stores to achieve profitability has shrunk from 23 months to six months today. “We plan to continue operating with fiscal discipline as we scale from 350 stores to 700 stores by reinvesting the capital generated from mature stores back into the business. If we are able to achieve this while continuing to delight customers, I believe we will be ready to go public relatively soon,” said Co-founder & CEO Aadit Palicha.
Zepto plans to launch new categories and expand initiatives like Zepto Pass. To support its growth ambitions, the company plans to hire top talent across categories including engineering, product, growth and finance.