Indian food delivery app Swiggy is in the process of closing an $800 million (Rs 5,860 crore) funding round from investors including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Capital LP, and Falcon Edge. Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Sriharsha Majety said in a note to employees on Monday, according to a report by Bloomberg.
The deal pegs the valuation of the company close to $5 billion, according to reports. “It gives me great pleasure to inform you all that as a part of our recent efforts, we’re closing around $800 million in financing. Some of the world’s best financial investors like Falcon Edge Capital, Amansa Capital, Think Investments, Carmignac, and Goldman Sachs, are joining us as new investors this time,” Majety said, according to New Indian Express.
Existing investors including Accel and Naspers Ltd. participated in the fundraising, which was heavily subscribed otherwise as well, Majety wrote in the note. As the convenience delivery segment grows to half a billion users in the next decade, the new capital will speed up growth in its existing businesses and help seed new ones.
“Given our unfettered ambition though, we will continue to seed new offerings for the future that may be ready for investment later,” Majety said.
India’s consumer startups are on a roll as the country’s smartphone users are estimated to reach 1 billion in the coming years and the internet user base is swelling. The coronavirus pandemic, which is sweeping out Indian cities including Mumbai in its second wave, is also driving competition in food delivery, which is seen as a safer option than eating out.
A Swiggy spokesman declined to make comments about the reports.
Over the last year, “we have managed to drive a strong recovery in the food delivery business with a very clear path to profitability,” Majety wrote. “The food delivery business is the strongest it’s ever been and now we are well on our way to drive continued growth over the next decade.”
The cofounder said the startup’s hyperlocal grocery delivery service is showing “amazing promise.”
