Message from Zepto CEO after raising $665 million: “Only possible in one country…”

Zepto recently made a $665 million investment, propelling its valuation to $3.6 billion. This marks a significant jump from the Mumbai-based fast commerce startup’s previous valuation of $1.4 billion nine months ago. A day after the news, Zepto co-founder and CEO Aadit Palicha shared a post saying that this can only be possible in one country in 2024: India.

“Reflecting on the last 3 years of building Zepto: the story of 2 kids dropping out of college and starting a company worth 30,000 crores in just 3 years is only possible in one country in 2024: India” , said Palicha.

“We are ready to dedicate ourselves to building Zepto into a world-class $50 billion Indian company that employs thousands of people – as a way of giving back to this country that has given us so much,” he added , sharing an image from The Economic. Times.


Investor Names, Zepto IPO Plans and More
New investors joining the round include Avenir, Lightspeed and Avra, the new fund launched by Anu Hariharan. Existing investors Glade Brook, Nexus and StepStone co-led the round, with continued participation from Goodwater and Lachy Groom.

Zepto is also planning an initial public offering (IPO) and reports that its gross merchandise value (GMV) has increased year over year to more than $1 billion. As of May 2024, approximately 75% of the company’s dark stores operate with positive EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization).

“We plan to continue operating with fiscal discipline as we grow from 350 stores to 700 stores by reinvesting capital generated from mature stores back into the business. If we can achieve this while continuing to delight customers, I think we will be ready to go public relatively soon,” Palicha said.

This funding comes as competition in the fast-moving trade space intensifies. Currently, Zepto competes with Blinkit and Zomato’s Swiggy Instamart for a larger share of the consumer market.