Amitabh Bachchan’s family office has acquired a minority stake in food delivery and quick commerce app Swiggy, according to reports. The investment comes at a time when the quick commerce sector is experiencing rapid growth, driven by increasing demand for faster delivery services.
Bachchan’s family office bought shares from Swiggy’s employees and early investors, signalling a strategic investment in the company’s growth. This move is expected to boost competition in the quick commerce space, with Swiggy competing directly with Zomato and Zepto.
Experts say this investment will intensify competition in the quick commerce space, putting the spotlight on Swiggy’s upcoming initial public offering (IPO). The company’s valuation stood at $15.1 billion in March 2024, with its grocery service segment, Instamart, driving growth.
Billionaire Raamdeo Agrawal, chairman of Motilal Oswal Group, also bought stakes in Swiggy. He had invested in Swiggy’s competitor Zepto in July.
SoftBank-backed Swiggy is targeting a valuation of around $15 billion for its upcoming IPO to raise $1-1.2 billion, news agency Reuters had reported. The deal would make it one of biggest Indian IPOs this year.
Swiggy received a shareholder approval in April for an IPO that would raise up to $1.25 billion and its confidential filing is expected to be cleared by the Indian markets regulator within a month or so.
The company is targeting a valuation of around $15 billion, though the final figure can change, Reuters reported. Swiggy said in response to a Reuters query that it could not comment on “any market speculation”.
Its last funding round, led by Invesco in 2022, valued it at $10.7 billion. Swiggy aimed to use IPO proceeds to expand its quick commerce Instamart business and open more warehouses to better compete with Zomato.
Zomato’s shares have more than doubled since listing in 2021 and it has a market valuation of around $28 billion.
With inputs from Reuters
