Quick commerce company <keyword id="19939134" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Zepto" source="keywords">Zepto</keyword> on Friday said it has raised <keyword id="22130274" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="USD-665-million" source="keywords">USD 665 million</keyword> (about Rs 5,560 crore) in the latest funding round that valued the firm at USD 3.6 billion, almost triple than its worth a year back. The massive fundraise comes less than a year after the Mumbai-based startup raised USD 235 million at a valuation of USD 1.4 billion. The funding round saw participation from new investors like Avenir, Lightspeed, and Avra, alongside existing investors Glade Brook, Nexus, and StepStone, Goodwater, and Lachy Groom. "We've gone from 0 to 1 billion-plus in sales, or GMV, in 29 months, that is faster than any other internet company before us... Even on a base of over a billion dollars at this point, we are growing 100 per cent-plus year on year. And that for us is one of the big drivers of this fundraise," Zepto co-founder and CEO Aadit Palicha told PTI. Attributing the growth to the performance of the quick commerce firm, the young entrepreneur said, "This is largely because of the input excellence we've built across the supply chain. "Whether it is sourcing excellence, mother hub efficiency, line haul utilisation, or our last mile, the innovation that we've done, or forecasting, we're in this place where even as we've been able to grow, we've been able to drive efficiency to get the business to pretty much close to full operating cash flow positive today." He said the overall business is close to operating at break-even cash flow. Nearly 75 per cent of the company's stores are fully EBITDA positive as of May 2024, he said. "Over the next 12-18 months, although it might fluctuate, but we'll still be pretty close to operating cash flow positive, and the idea is to keep in that direction, get the business to a place where we can list next 9-12 months," he said. Zepto co-founder and CTO <keyword id="12442402" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Kaivalya-Vohra" source="Orion">Kaivalya Vohra</keyword> said the firm plans to hire top talent across engineering, product, growth, finance, operations, and category management. "If you are looking for a high growth, high meritocracy and high intensity culture where you can convert hard work and ambition into disproportionate career growth, Zepto is the place for you," he said.

Zepto raises USD 665 million; Valuation nearly triples to USD 3.6 billion

<ul><li>Existing and new investors invest $200 mn in the quick commerce company ahead of its public listing plans.</li><li>The Series E round was led by <keyword id="18533825" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="stepstone-group" source="Orion">StepStone Group</keyword>, which is its first direct investment in an Indian company.</li><li>Startup intends to become cash flow positive ahead of its public listing in 2025. </li></ul> <keyword id="2023017" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="unicorns" source="Orion">Unicorns</keyword> are rare animals even in the fiction world and during a <keyword id="6412154" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="funding-winter" source="Orion">funding winter</keyword> they become rarer. At a time when startups are left in the cold by venture capital funds, <keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> has become India’s 84th unicorn with its latest fundraise. India had 83 unicorns at the start of the year but several startups have lost that tag with down rounds and cuts in valuation. The quick commerce player, started by two teenagers two years ago, has raised $200 million through a Series E round at a valuation of $1.4 billion. The latest round is entirely primary. The agenda is to build a good capital base ahead of a potential listing in 2025. With this round, the startup has brought on board a bunch of new investors. This round was led by StepStone Group and this investment into Zepto is their first direct investment in an Indian company). Additionally, Goodwater Capital, a consumer-focused venture capital firm based in California, joined the round as a new investor. Notably, existing investors, like Nexus Venture Partners, Glade Brook Capital, Lachy Groom and more, doubled down on their investments in Zepto with meaningful follow-on investments. Says <keyword id="12778880" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="aadit-palicha" source="Orion">Aadit Palicha</keyword>, Co-founder &amp; CEO of Zepto, said, “This business is about execution and we are succeeding because our execution is strong. Our culture of deep frugality and worshiping customers has gotten us here, but there is still so much for us to achieve. We are in this to build a generational company and it truly feels like this is just the beginning.” The startup is looking at becoming EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) positive over the next 12-18 months. And by early 2015, Zepto is looking to launch its initial public offering and take the company public. Earlier this month, Meesho, a homegrown e-commerce marketplace, became the first horizontal e-commerce company in India to turn profitable. In May, the startup retrenched 251 people as it was looking to cut costs. It had earlier handed pink slips to 300 employees in August last year. Talking to Business Insider, Palicha said that not only does the company seek to become EBITDA positive but Zepto will be cash flow positive by the time it hits public markets. Even though Zepto is pursuing profitable growth, it has not resorted to any retrenchment to cut costs. In a bear market like this, Palicha said that they learned that there is no either or when it comes to growth and profits. The current funding winter has taught these founders many things early on. Palicha says: “We have become better entrepreneurs in a bear market.The quality of decisions we took were not the same as they are today.” Like many startups Zepto too seems to have realised that it cannot burn cash to grow revenues. The company has said that its cash burn is near zero, the cost of acquiring customers is down 70% compared to last year. Zepto is present in seven cities right now. The startup’s revenues are to the tune of $50-60 mn per month. The startup plans to enter new cities once the existing ones become profitable. <keyword id="12442402" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="kaivalya-vohra" source="Orion">Kaivalya Vohra</keyword>, Co-founder &amp; CTO of Zepto, says, “Even with this capital, we want to maintain our discipline, avoid complacency, and push hard to hit EBITDA positivity. In that journey, the biggest drivers of P&amp;L improvement for us are based on technology and product. We are building one of the best supply chain product stacks in the country today and we are investing heavily in customer-facing product as well. This technical excellence is in our DNA, and I’m excited about the next phase of building.”

What Funding Winter? Zepto raises $200 mn to become the first unicorn of 2023

<ul><li>The top 10 list of new additions was dominated by the billionaire Abhay Vakil family — co-founder of Asian Paints. </li><li>Ashwin Desai and family of Aether Industries with a wealth of ₹11,700 crore came second in the list of people who made their debut on the list . </li><li>The number of entrants to the list has increased by 60% in the past five years, said <keyword id="2672295" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="anas-rahman-junaid" source="Orion">Anas Rahman Junaid</keyword>, MD and Chief Researcher, <keyword id="3656834" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="hurun-india" source="Orion">Hurun India</keyword>.</li></ul>As many as 149 people made their debut in IIFL <keyword id="15045674" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="wealth-hurun-india-rich-list" source="Orion">Wealth Hurun India Rich List</keyword> 2022, released today. Three spots in the top 10 list of new additions were taken up by the Vakil family with holdings in Asian Paints. Nehal Abhay Vakil, with a net worth of ₹11,700 crore, tops the list, whereas, Vivek Abhay Vakil and Bhairavi Abhay Vakil were ranked fourth and seventh respectively. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Name </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Rank </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Net worth </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Nehal Abhay Vakil </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">1 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹11,700 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Vivek Abhay Vakil </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">4 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹8,400 crore </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Bhairavi Abhay Vakil </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹7,300 crore </td></tr></tbody></table>Source: IIFL Wealth Hurun report The second position was grabbed by Ashwin Desai &amp; family of Aether Industries with a wealth of ₹11,700 crore, followed by Faizal Kottikollon of KEF Holdings with ₹9,500 crore. Zepto founder, 19-year-old <keyword id="12442402" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="kaivalya-vohra" source="Orion">Kaivalya Vohra</keyword> was named as the youngest in the additional list. He has a net worth of ₹1,000 crore and is ranked at 1036th in the list which had 1,103 people. <keyword id="14134948" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="alakh-pandey" source="Orion">Alakh Pandey</keyword>, popularly known as ‘Physics Wallah’, and its co-founder Prateek Boob also entered the list. Both are ranked at 399th position with a wealth of ₹4,000 crore as their startup Physics Wallah turned unicorn. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Name </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Wealth (in ₹ crore) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Company </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Nehal Abhay Vakil </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">11,700 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Asian Paints </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ashwin Desai &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">10,300 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Aether Industries </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Faizal Kottikollon </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">9,500 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">KEF Holdings </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Vivek Abhay Vakil </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">8,400 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Asian Paints </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Alla Ayodhya Rami Reddy </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7,400 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Ramky Group </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Kishore R Chhabria &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7,400 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Allied Blenders &amp; Distillers </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Bhairavi Abhay Vakil </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">7,300 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Asian Paints </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">A V Venkatraman </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">5,500 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Latent View Analytics </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Madhavkrishna Singhania </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">4,700 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">JK Cement </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Raghavpat Singhania </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">4,700 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">JK Cement </td></tr></tbody></table>Source: Hurun report The number of entrants to the list has increased by 60% in the past five years, said Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and chief researcher, Hurun India. The chemicals &amp; petrochemicals sector contributed the greatest number of new entrants with 20 new additions, followed by financial services (17) and software &amp; services (12). Junaid further added, “The new additions to IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List have occurred at a time when valuations are at a low, both in the listed and privately held companies. India is best positioned to capitalize on robust domestic demand, a stable political landscape, favourable demographics, and a sustainable external debt.” The cumulative wealth of Indians in the rich list increased by 9.4%, while average wealth has decreased by 1%. As many as 602 individuals saw their wealth increase or stay the same in the past one year. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/adani-group-enters-into-a-no-poaching-pact-with-mukesh-ambani-led-reliance-industries/articleshow/94353862.cms">Adani Group enters into a no-poaching pact with Mukesh Ambani led Reliance Industries</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/iit-madras-incubated-ev-startup-esmito-raises-10-crore/articleshow/94354081.cms">IIT Madras-incubated EV startup Esmito raises ₹10 crore</a>

IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List 2022 sees 149 new entrants

<keyword id="19939134" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Zepto" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Zepto" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Zepto">Zepto</keyword>, a popular quick-commerce platform which rivals Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart, has secured <keyword id="22972597" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="USD-340-million" source="keywords">USD 340 million</keyword> in a follow-on financing round led by <keyword id="20231170" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="General-Catalyst" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="General Catalyst" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="General Catalyst">General Catalyst</keyword>, pushing the Mumbai-based startup's <keyword id="19896943" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="valuation" source="keywords">valuation</keyword> to $5 billion. This fresh infusion of capital comes shortly after Zepto raised $665 million in June 2024, which had then valued the company at $3.6 billion—almost triple its worth from the previous year. The latest round was spearheaded by General Catalyst, with new investors Dragon Fund and Epiq Capital also joining the fray. Existing backers, including <keyword id="22972598" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="StepStone" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="StepStone" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="StepStone">StepStone</keyword>, Lightspeed, DST, and Contrary, have further increased their investments in Zepto. <keyword id="20291499" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Aadit-Palicha" source="keywords">Aadit Palicha</keyword>, Co-founder and CEO of Zepto, explained that the decision to pursue this follow-on financing was driven by two key factors. "First, we couldn’t miss the opportunity to bring <keyword id="21957857" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Neeraj-Arora" source="keywords">Neeraj Arora</keyword> from General Catalyst on board as our lead investor. Second, strengthening our balance sheet is a strategic move as we continue to show strong growth and operational efficiency," Palicha said according to PTI. Zepto is rapidly expanding its network of dark stores, which currently stands at 370, according to a report in The Hindu. The company plans to increase this to approximately 700 stores by March 2025, thereby strengthening its presence across the top 20 cities in India. In June, Zepto reported crossing the $1 billion mark in annualized Gross Merchandise Value (GMV). Founded in 2021 by Stanford University dropouts Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, Zepto has rapidly grown into a leading player in the quick commerce sector, drawing significant attention from investors and industry watchers alike.

Zepto secures USD 340 million in latest funding round, boosting valuation to USD 5 billion

Recouping the dent caused by the <keyword id="20016892" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hindenburg-Research" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Hindenburg Research" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Hindenburg Research">Hindenburg Research</keyword> report, <keyword id="19929098" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gautam-Adani" source="keywords">Gautam Adani</keyword>'s <keyword id="22964360" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="networth" source="keywords">networth</keyword> shot up 95 per cent to Rs 11.6 lakh crore last year, which helped him replace <keyword id="19916798" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mukesh-Ambani" source="keywords">Mukesh Ambani</keyword> to become the <keyword id="22961446" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="Richest-Indian" source="keywords">richest Indian</keyword>, a report said on Thursday. <keyword id="19896380" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Reliance-Industries" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Reliance Industries" meta.hostid="261" meta.entityid="Reliance Industries">Reliance Industries</keyword> Chairman and Managing Director <keyword id="19898589" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ambani" source="keywords">Ambani</keyword>'s overall networth increased by 25 per cent to Rs 10.14 lakh crore, as per the 2024 <keyword id="21075617" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hurun-India-Rich-List" source="keywords">Hurun India Rich List</keyword>. In 2023's report, <keyword id="19898586" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Adani" source="keywords">Adani</keyword>'s wealth declined by 57 per cent to Rs 4.74 lakh crore, and Ambani was way ahead with a fortune of Rs 8.08 lakh crore. It can be noted that Adani's networth declined sharply following various allegations levelled by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research. The conglomerate has denied all the allegations. In the 2014 edition, Hurun had pegged Adani's fortunes at Rs 44,000 crore, which made him the tenth richest Indian then. Shiv Nadar and family of HCL gained one spot to be the third richest with a networth of Rs 3.14 lakh crore, while Serum Institute of India's Cyrus Poonawalla slipped by one notch to the fourth position with a networth of Rs 2.89 lakh crore in 2024. Sun Pharmaceuticals' Dilip Shanghvi continued his ascent on the list, securing the fifth richest tag against sixth last year with a networth of Rs 2.50 lakh crore. Radha Vembu of Zoho was the wealthiest among self-made women with a fortune of Rs 47,500 crore, while Zepto's co-founders Kaivalya Vohra and Aadit Palicha, who are in their early 20s, were the youngest on the list with a networth of Rs 3,600 crore and Rs 4,300 crore, respectively. The list, which captures Indians having a networth of over Rs 1,000 crore, grew by 220 individuals to 1,539 people in 2024. The cumulative wealth has seen a 46 per cent jump in the year. Actor Shah Rukh Khan made his debut on the list with a fortune estimated at Rs 7,300 crore, which was much higher than business partner Juhi Chawla with Rs 4,600 crore networth secured second place among the entertainers. Interestingly, 16 professionals also made it to the list with Arista Networks' chief executive Jayshree Ullal being the wealthiest at Rs 32,100 crore and followed by D-mart chief executive Ignatius Navil Noronha at Rs 6,900 crore, according to the list. Gera Developments' Kumar Pritamdas Gera's wealth grew the fastest at 566 per cent in the 2024 list, while Ambani and Adani had the biggest growth by quantum, the list said.

Adani replaces Ambani to become wealthiest Indian with a net worth of Rs 11.6 lakh crores

<ul><li><keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> elevates <keyword id="184778" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="ankit-agarwal" source="Orion">Ankit Agarwal</keyword> as CPO to improve customer experience and drive innovation across categories.</li><li>Zepto’s new CPO has also been a founder in the past, with Orinko, trying to build India’s first ever fruits and vegetables consumer brand.</li><li>Zepto turned the first unicorn of 2023 with a valuation of $1.4 bn last month and is working towards a public listing over the next 12-18 months. </li></ul> Quick commerce player Zepto on Monday announced the elevation of Ankit Agarwal as the company’s Chief Product Officer. A major part of Zepto’s journey ahead will be driven by innovation in product and technology. Ankit Agarwal, CPO, Zepto, explains, “We're not following trends; we're setting them. I'm excited to be part of that team that is revolutionising commerce in India.” Kaivalya Vohra, Co-founder and CTO, Zepto, said, “Ankit joined us about a year ago and in that time he has built strong rigour within the fulfilment charter. We've been able to ship world class technology over the last year; everything from building our entire last mile stack in-house to building and rolling out a warehouse management system in &lt;6 months, and many other needle-moving initiatives.” With 13+ years of product experience in companies such as Flipkart, Delhivery and Infra.Market, Ankit joined Zepto in August 2022 as SVP of Product to lead the entire fulfilment charter, spanning the entirety of supply chain, last mile and finance tech. Ankit has also been a founder in the past, with Orinko, trying to build India’s first ever fruits and vegetables consumer brand. With Ankit’s elevation, he will now own product end-to-end, from consumer to supply chain and last mile. The quick commerce player has its job cut out after it became a unicorn last month. Zepto is India’s 84th unicorn with its latest fundraise. India had 83 unicorns at the start of the year but several startups have lost that tag with down rounds and cuts in valuation. The quick commerce player, started by two teenagers two years ago, has raised $200 million through a Series E round at a valuation of $1.4 billion. The latest round is entirely primary. The agenda is to build a good capital base ahead of a potential listing in 2025. With this round, the startup has brought on board a bunch of new investors. This round was led by StepStone Group and this investment into Zepto is their first direct investment in an Indian company). Additionally, Goodwater Capital, a consumer-focused venture capital firm based in California, joined the round as a new investor. Notably, existing investors, like Nexus Venture Partners, Glade Brook Capital, Lachy Groom and more, doubled down on their investments in Zepto with meaningful follow-on investments.

Zepto appoints Ankit Agarwal as chief product officer to drive innovation in fulfilment

<ul><li>Ramesh Bafna joins <keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> as chief financial officer of quick commerce startup Zepto.</li><li>Key mandate is to take the company public in two years and make the company EBITDA positive before that.</li><li>Zepto claims metrics are strong and several of its dark stores are already profitable.</li></ul>The finance function is inevitably the most important function in any start-up, but when you’re talking about capital raise and public listing, the chief financial officer is the captain of the ship. With an eye on public listing two years down the line, quick commerce start-up, Zepto, has roped in Ramesh Bafna as the chief financial officer. <keyword id="12778880" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="aadit-palicha" source="Orion">Aadit Palicha</keyword>, CEO and Co-founder of Zepto told Business Insider, “We are at an inflexion point in our journey and are confident that we can go public in two years time. In this respect we are excited to have Ramesh join us and his core mandate will be to take the company public.” Ramesh Bafna has held leadership roles across finance, audit and business in companies like Wipro, Flipkart and Myntra. Prior to his new gig at Zepto, Bafna has worked with CoinSwitch and EvenFlow as the CFO in both these assignments. According to Bafna, “Zepto has made industry-leading progress on profitability, while continue to grow fast. To take the company public in 2-3 years, my focus will be to build a strong controllership infrastructure, bring the company's compliance to the next level, and most importantly, get the overall business to EBITDA positive, which I believe is possible in a reasonable timeframe.” Zepto was born at the peak of the pandemic with a proposition to home-deliver food and groceries to consumers. The company was founded by two teenagers in 2021 - Kaivalya Vohra and Aadit Palicha. The company, which plans to take on e-commerce biggies over time, will need capital to further fuel its growth. Palicha says that a large number of Zepto’s stores are profitable and that the financial metrics of the company are very strong. To this effect, the IPO planning process will be key for the company and its CFO. The funding winter that set in last year has made it hard for start-ups to raise capital. India saw a massive inflow of capital during the pandemic, but funding in the March quarter of this calendar year dropped 75%. In the March quarter start-ups have raised only $2.8 bn compare to $11.8 bn last year in the same period. Funding volumes have shrunk primarily because investors are not keen on late stage start-ups. Late stage funding has declined in the March quarter by 79%. Zepto’s Co-founder and CEO, Aadit Palicha, also said, "Ramesh is a best-in-class e-commerce CFO and he will build a best-in-class Finance team at Zepto. Through disciplined execution, Zepto is delivering incredible progress on growth and profitability. To take Zepto public in 2-3 years, we believe we need an incredible CFO and Ramesh is the right person for the job. I’m looking forward to this journey of building a generational company with him onboard!”

Zepto preps for public listing in 2 years; Brings in Ramesh Bafna as CFO to lead IPO process

<ul><li><keyword id="111343" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gautam-Adani" source="Orion">Gautam Adani</keyword> added ₹5 lakh crore to his wealth last year to become the richest Indian, beating <keyword id="3820" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mukesh-Ambani" source="Orion">Mukesh Ambani</keyword> by ₹3 lakh crore.</li><li><keyword id="76451" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="adani" source="Orion">Adani</keyword> added ₹1,612 crore to his wealth each day – almost 8 times that of Ambani, who added ₹210 crore per day in the last one year.</li><li>Overall, the top ten richest people in India have a total wealth of nearly ₹32 lakh crore, of which Adani and Ambani account for nearly 60%.</li></ul>Gujarat-based billionaire Gautam Adani added ₹5 lakh crore to his wealth last year to become India’s richest man as per IIFL Wealth <keyword id="15044910" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="hurun-india-rich-list-2022" source="Orion">Hurun India Rich List 2022</keyword>. In 2021, the founder of the Adani Group was behind Mukesh Ambani by ₹2 lakh crore. He is now ahead of Ambani by ₹3 lakh crore. The report calls it the ‘₹5 lakh crore catch up’. Adani’s total wealth stands at ₹10.94 lakh crore, and he added ₹1,612 crore per day over the last year, the release stated. “From an Indian wealth creation perspective, 2022 will be remembered for Adani’s meteoric rise. Briskly expanding his commodity trading company into a coal–to–port-to-energy conglomerate, he is the only Indian to have built not one, but seven companies with a market cap of one lakh crore,” said Anas Rahman Junaid, MD and chief researcher, Hurun India. The rapid rise in the value of his seven listed companies – nine now, with the addition of Ambuja Cements and ACC – has helped Adani zoom past Ambani. “In 2012, Adani’s wealth was hardly one-sixth of Ambani’s wealth and no one could imagine that he would overtake Ambani to become the richest man in India in ten years,” said Junaid. The report also said that India also gave a new number two, Gautam Adani, to the Hurun Global Rich List. Adani’s gains also helped boost the overall wealth of the Indian billionaires. “The cumulative wealth growth of the IIFL Wealth <keyword id="3656833" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="hurun-india-rich-list" source="Orion">Hurun India Rich List</keyword> 2022 excluding Adani is only 2.67%, compared to the overall 9%,” said Junaid. As many as 149 individuals entered the IIFL Hurun India Rich List of 1,103 – all of whom have a wealth of ₹1,000 crore or more. They cumulatively have a wealth of ₹100 lakh crore. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/gautam-adani-just-1-billion-away-from-becoming-the-second-richest-person-in-the-world-as-per-bloomberg-index-report/articleshow/94242575.cms">Adani is also the second richest person in the world, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, with a total wealth of $150 billion.</a> <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Mukesh Ambani falls to the second position" comment="subhead" text="Mukesh Ambani falls to the second position">Mukesh Ambani falls to the second position</cmsannotation> After holding on to the richest Indian tag for ten years, Mukesh Ambani fell to the second position in this year’s list with a wealth of ₹7.94 lakh crore. Despite being dethroned from the numero uno position, Ambani’s wealth grew 11% last year – as he added ₹210 crore to his wealth every day during the period, making him the second-best performer after Adani. <div type="image" title="Hurun India Rich List 2022 Top 10 vs rest." msid="94348155" hostid="261" sizebytes="25244" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Hurun India Rich List 2022&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> Together, Adani and Ambani account for 59% of the total wealth of the top ten richest people in India. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none;" class="redcator-table-advance"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Name </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Wealth (in cr) </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Change </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Gautam Adani &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹10,94,400 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">116% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Mukesh Ambani &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹7,94,700 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">11% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Cyrus S Poonawalla &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹2,05,400 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">25% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Shiv Nadar &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,85,800 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-21% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Radhakishan Damani &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,75,100 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">13% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Vinod Shantilal Adani &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,69,000 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">28% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">SP Hinduja &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,65,000 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-25% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">LN Mittal &amp; family </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,51,800 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">-13% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Dilip Shanghvi </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,33,500 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;background-color:#d9d9d9;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">12% </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Uday Kotak </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">₹1,19,400 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-right:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;border-top:solid #000000 0.9978225000000001pt;vertical-align:bottom;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">3% </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table> Source: IIFL Hurun India Rich List 2022 <cmsannotation type="cmsannotation" annotationid="Zepto co-founder Kaivalya Vohra youngest on Hurun rich list" comment="subhead" text="Zepto co-founder Kaivalya Vohra youngest on Hurun rich list">Zepto co-founder Kaivalya Vohra youngest on <keyword id="424923" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="hurun-rich-list" source="Orion">Hurun rich list</keyword></cmsannotation> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/zepto-raised-100-million-at-570-valuation-to-deliver-product-in-10-minutes/articleshow/88394937.cms">Zepto co-founder Kaivalya Vohra</a> is the youngest to debut on Hurun rich list, at the age of just 19 years. The youngest debutant on this list 10 years ago was a 37-year-old, according to a release by Hurun. The wealth creation by startups has been immense – according to the report as 100 startup founders figure in this year’s rich list. Together, these 100 startup founders account for ₹5.06 lakh crore wealth and have an average age of 40 years. “The IPOs of some of the high-profile startups realigned the valuation spread between institutional and retail investors. Having said the aforementioned, we believe the startup wealth creation will continue,” Junaid added. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/how-indian-equity-gold-and-debt-investments-have-performed-over-the-past-two-decades/articleshow/94304653.cms">Story in charts: How Indian equity, gold and debt investments have performed over the past two decades</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/thelife/personalities/news/anil-agarwal-profile-vedanta-resources-listing-in-london-stock-exchange-gujarat-semiconductor-chipset-plant/articleshow/94297057.cms">Anil Agarwal – how a Bihar boy who knew only ‘yes’ and ‘no’ went onto list the first Indian company on London Stock Exchange</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/for-every-100-pulled-out-by-foreign-investors-from-the-indian-equity-markets-domestic-investors-have-ploughed-back-89-this-year/articleshow/94220904.cms">For every ₹100 pulled out by foreign investors from the Indian equity markets, domestic investors have ploughed back ₹89 this year</a>

Gautam Adani, Mukesh Ambani account for 59% of India’s top 10 billionaires’ wealth

<ul><li>One year old quick commerce player <keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> is making <keyword id="18635" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amazon" source="Orion">Amazon</keyword> and Flipkart look like legacy companies with delivery times of more than a day.</li><li>Analysts believe that Amazon in India has a weaker value proposition in 'New' commerce, where Zepto &amp; Meesho dominate.</li><li>Zepto is looking to grab market share from Amazon in multiple categories it dominates.</li></ul>When Steve Jobs delivered his commencement speech at Stanford University in 2005, never would he have imagined that 15 years later two 17-year old boys would follow his footsteps and opt out of the coveted computer science programme at the same college to pursue their entrepreneurial dream. Aadit <keyword id="12442400" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="palicha" source="Orion">Palicha</keyword> and Kaivalya Vohra were crazy enough to believe in 2020 they could transform the online grocery delivery market in 2020 and they actually did it with Zepto, a quick commerce player that has created a new paradigm in online commerce. Valued at $900 mn, newbie Zepto is now challenging the Big Tech players on delivery time and formats. Despite building a soonicorn in less than a year, Palicha is almost always expecting to be dissed for being that “idiot kid.” He starts the interview by saying: “I have come to a point where I like it when people say something is bonkers, then I take particular interest in it. I was laughed at during interviews when I wanted to hire senior people. I used to care because I was young, but I got hammered so many times that I stopped caring.” <div type="image" title="Aadit Palicha CEO and Co founder, Zepto" msid="94400605" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Aadit Palicha CEO and Co founder, Zepto&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The story of Vohra and Palicha is as crazy it sounds – a couple of kids who started out to solve the problem of grocery delivery at the peak of the pandemic and ended up convincing angel investors and venture capital firms to bet $360 mn on their “crazy” idea. Welcome to the fantasy world of startups, where ideas rule the roost and age is just a number. In less than a year, Zepto is making Amazon and Flipkart look like legacy companies with delivery times of a day or more. Online commerce was born in the desktop era and while it has evolved in the last few years, it continues to deliver at the same pace as it did years ago, giving an opportunity to new commerce players like Zepto to solve problems with better formats and faster fulfillment. On-demand commerce is the latest to disrupt the online cart in India, dominated largely by the big players. A report by global investment bank Bernstein says that even though India is Amazon’s biggest and fastest growing overseas market: “It also faces immense competitive pressure in fast growing categories, a weaker value proposition in 'New' commerce, limited traction in tier 2/3 cities, and an unfavorable regulatory environment for outsiders.” The pandemic has helped germinate disruptive ideas and newbies are taking the game several notches higher by doing what nobody ever imagined – taking e-commerce beyond the big cities and delivery of fresh and groceries within minutes. Zepto is not content being a soonicorn, with an eye on profitability the Q-commerce player is already experimenting with private labels in food, high-margin categories like personal care and 24/7 deliveries of hot snacks and hot beverages. Confident of where the company is going, Palicha, who is the CEO, says the company is on track to clock one million orders a day with annualised sales of $1 bn by October 2023. Refusing to call it the next Amazon, Suvir Sujan, Co-founder and Managing Director of Nexus Venture Partners, says, “On demand commerce is a new paradigm in online delivery. I would love to say it is the next Amazon, but let’s first add more categories and get customers to come back for more. But what is more than groceries, time will tell.” <div type="image" title="Suvir Sujan, Co-founder and Managing Director of Nexus Venture Partners" msid="94400640" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Suvir Sujan, Co-founder and Managing Director of Nexus Venture Partners&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The Early Days of Zepto At the headquarters of Zepto in suburban Mumbai, Palicha warmly greets his guests with a smile and Diet Coke from his mini refrigerator. There’s no nervous stammering, as one would expect from a high school graduate. Clearly two years is long enough time for a teenager to “grow up” and Palicha has come a long way from the days when he wore a green tee with Kirana Kart splayed all over it to deliver groceries to families in Mumbai’s suburban neighbourhood called Sher-e-Punjab. The journey of these two college dropouts began at the start of the pandemic when they decided to take a year out of Stanford and give their entrepreneurial dream a chance. <div type="image" title="Kaivalya Vohra, Co founder and CIO, Zepto" msid="94400684" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Kaivalya Vohra, Co founder and CIO, Zepto&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The first battle was to come back to India from Dubai, where they both did their schooling at Gems World Academy. Jumping on to the Vande Bharat programme rolled out by the government to bring Indians back home during the pandemic, Vohra and Palicha boarded their flight back to Mumbai with a suitcase full of start-up ideas. Upon landing they decided to shack-up at Vohra’s family-run bed and breakfast in Andheri East as nobody wanted to rent an apartment to two teenage boys. In the early days, they picked up groceries from kirana stores and delivered them to their customers’ doorstep, which helped them understand route planning, time taken to deliver and order fulfillment issues. The biggest lesson, however, was that they could not make money by running errands. It was at this time that they realised that they had to own the entire fulfillment process, if they wanted to build a profitable business. Picking up groceries from kirana stores and delivering them would not yield them the requisite margins. Those were the early days and they started clocking 2000 orders a day through WhatsApp groups and the early rendition of their app called KiranaKart. <div type="image" title="Burn rate has come down 5X on a per-order basis" msid="94400735" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Burn rate has come down 5X on a per-order basis&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The Birth of Zepto The model of quick commerce soon started taking shape in their heads, as their retention metrics showed that deliveries within a 1.8 km radius reached within minutes and that helped them retain customers. The other pain point that customers had was incorrect items in the cart. Vohra and Palicha started applying their minds on solving these problems to improve retention. Explains Palicha, “We had a model where we were experimenting with hyper local delivery and that got us 2000 orders a week. Kaivalya and I were delivering ourselves in the beginning. There was confusion over orders and erratic delivery timelines was an issue. Our first learning was if we had a lot of SKUs then it would help.” The second issue the duo encountered was around quality. “We looked at cohorts and found delivery time of over an hour was an issue,” adds Palicha. By this time, they were encouraged by friends to apply to YCombinator and once they got through the programme, they had the confidence they needed to take the plunge. Two years ago YCom gave the two boys $125,000 and some other angel investors put in the rest. They hit the sweet spot when they cut delivery time to below 20 minutes. “Customers started interacting frequently when we delivered in less time,” explains Palicha. That’s when they decided to scale. Nexus Partners Boards The Bus Having worked on the early iterations of the app and having learned from their mistakes, Palicha and Vohra set out to attract the bigger investors for their startup. Armed with their learnings and coaching from YCombinator, the duo were ready to face a proper venture capital firm with their own unique quick commerce proposition. Recalling their early days, Kaivalya Vohra, who is the CTO of Zepto, says: “We decided to drop out of Stanford and work on a startup that would solve a consumer problem. We decided to build an app in 2020 called KiranaKart to deliver groceries from local stores to consumers. That’s where we got our early learning from.” Globally, quick commerce is an established business but the focus is largely consumer categories like ice, cigarettes and alcohol that typically people tend to order from Q-Commerce players. The need for fresh produce is met by organized retail players in developed markets with a store being present in every block almost. In India, however, both these markets are fragmented and quality is an issue. So when Suvir Sujan of Nexus Venture Partners told Palicha that their model of kirana store deliveries would not work, Palicha agreed. Recalls Sujan, “He recognised what was not working and was assessing it to change the model. When I talked about building different layers of the business, he was able to articulate it very well. They had the technology chops and also had the maturity to know that they would need a senior team to build the business.” Within days of receiving funding from Nexus, Palicha started interviewing senior professionals to build the team. Few wanted to work for a company that did not even have a name and was led by a 19-year old. Eventually, the team that Palicha has built is like him, people who are driven by the passion to solve problems and disrupt existing models. Says Amritanshu Nanda, the chief marketing officer of Zepto, “What excited me was the vision and passion of the two founders and the massive disruption we were aiming to create in the fresh and grocery segment by reducing delivery to under 30 minutes from one day. My first conversation with them ended at 11 pm at night and soon after i walked out and called family and discussed with them.” It helped that Nanda has always worked for start-ups and quirky founders since 2008. <div type="image" title="Amritanshu Nanda, the chief marketing officer of Zepto" msid="94400818" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Amritanshu Nanda, the chief marketing officer of Zepto&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The Business Of Quick Commerce Quick commerce is more about using technology to solve problems rather than just cutting time to deliver the goods. A visit to Zepto’s dark store in Andheri East helps understand the business model better. Palicha says that the early days taught them how to delight customers. He explains: “We embodied this product and we felt it would be great. When we saw customers getting delighted, we felt it would be big. We became the product in a sense.” Zepto’s dark store in Andheri East resembles the trading floors of stock exchanges of yester years, where the outcry system was prevalent for buying and selling shares. At the entrance, packers awaiting their orders to be assigned to them stand, while at the other end are delivery partners who are waiting to pick up the deliveries assigned to them. Each time an order is assigned, a bell tolls and during peak demand it tolls endlessly. A big screen shows order numbers and time taken by each packer to finish packing the orders. As soon as an order is placed, packers are assigned on their handheld devices, which they pack in 76 seconds. Placing of products is an important factor, and since bread, eggs and poultry products are high demand categories they are placed right at the entrance. The handheld device reads the inventory each time a product flies off the shelf, so that the warehouse knows what needs to be replenished. Clearly, there’s a science behind delivering in 20 minutes and it only begins with route planning. In order to stock products that customers typically order, it is important to stock just enough products for which it is necessary to be able to predict demand. Sujan explains, “A lot of data analysis is required to predict demand in a hyperlocal environment. This data has to be fed back to the inventory management systems to ensure a high inventory turn. The whole value chain is important and for that demand prediction is important.” The dark stores are compact as the inventory velocity is high. Palicha and his team refuse to spell out the exact number of dark stores they have across India at the moment. Once Nexus was on board, putting the plan in place was easier and both Palicha and Vohra got down to hiring key talent, which entailed getting the best minds on board. Since delivering groceries was not profitable, they had to put in place the best supply chain experts to begin with. But hiring wasn’t easy as few senior professionals wanted to work for an 18 year old kid. Recalls Palicha, “When we told people what we wanted to build, people told us we had lost it. You can never deliver between 10- 20 minutes. If it was possible then why had nobody done it.” The first couple of months in early to mid 2021 was spent hiring the right talent. Zepto sources its entire fresh category from farmers and consumer products from companies. It is experimenting with high value food items like dry fruits and private labels. <div type="image" title="800% QoQ revenue growth" msid="94400980" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;800% QoQ revenue growth&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The Road Ahead Having cracked the delivery of groceries and fresh produce in the on-demand commerce space, Zepto will look at applying the model to multiple other categories that have traditionally been dominated by the likes of Amazon, which include pharmacy, fashion accessories, cafe, electronics and personal care. The company is looking to take market share from Amazon in multiple categories it dominates. All these categories can be delivered in much less time with assurance of quality with easy returns. Can the newbie build the same experience in multiple categories? Answers Palicha: “KV and I have the ambition to create the next generation of e-commerce in urban India.” Clearly, this story is far from over. SEE ALSO <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/online-e-commerce-player-meesho-is-the-new-crorepati-factory/articleshow/94399429.cms">Online e-commerce player Meesho is the new crorepati factory</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/careers/news/moonlighting-right-or-wrong/articleshow/94400817.cms">Moonlighting – Right or Wrong?</a>

The Zepto Boys: Competition that Amazon never saw coming

India’s jet-set: Here’s how billionaires earned, lost and donated in 2022

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<ul><li><keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> said that with its network of ‘cloud stores’ or micro-warehouses, it is able to consistently deliver in 10 minutes.</li><li> <keyword id="3275685" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="dunzo" source="Orion">Dunzo</keyword> too launched its dark stores in Bengaluru to enable quicker delivery of groceries, meat and medicine. </li><li>Dunzo was valued at $300 million in March 2021, while Zepto is now valued at $225 million.</li></ul>Quick grocery delivery app Zepto on Monday said it has raised $60 million in an early-stage round to expand its 10-minute delivery service nationwide. The company is valued at $225 million. Zepto said that with its network of ‘cloud stores’ or micro-warehouses, it is able to consistently deliver in 10 minutes through a combination of technical and operational excellence. “The data speaks for itself – once we started delivering in 10 minutes, our NPS (net promotor score) shot up and has constantly remained at around 85 with a 50%+ week-on-week user retention rate, which shows the incredibly strong customer love for our product,” said Kaivalya Vohra, Founder &amp; CTO. Aadit Palicha and Vohra, both computer science graduates from Stanford University in the US, have built Zepto this year with backing from institutional investors like Glade Brook Capital, Nexus and Y Combinator, along with individual investors. Zepto said it is expanding quickly across Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi-NCR and will be launching in key areas across Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune and Kolkata in the next 30 days. Its management includes senior leaders from Flipkart, Uber, Dream11, Pharmeasy and Pepperfry, to name a few. “Q-Commerce in India is an opportunity of epic proportions and strong unit economics. Today, we’re consistently growing 200 per cent every single month with an unstoppable team, robust product infrastructure, and deep access to institutional capital,” said Palicha. Zepto competes with Google-backed Dunzo in the quick commerce space. Earlier this year, Dunzo too launched its <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/google-backed-dunzo-earned-nearly-600-crore-from-8-cities-in-fy21-ceo-says-theyll-start-expanding-now/articleshow/85656919.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">dark stores in Bengaluru</a> to enable quicker delivery of groceries, meat and medicine. The company's was valued at $300 million in March 2021, according to an Entrackr <a href="https://entrackr.com/2021/03/exclusive-dunzos-valuation-crosses-300-mn/" data-type="tilCustomLink">report</a>. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/former-google-ceo-says-facebooks-metaverse-is-not-necessarily-the-best-thing-for-human-society-and-expresses-concerns-about-safety-of-artificial-intelligence-technology/articleshow/87440405.cms">Former Google CEO says Facebook's metaverse is 'not necessarily the best thing for human society' and expresses concerns about safety of artificial intelligence technology</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/india-starts-probe-into-facebooks-algorithm-seeks-info-on-moderation-process/articleshow/87326285.cms">India starts probe into Facebook’s algorithm, seeks info on moderation process</a> Facebook's problem isn't its brand - it's Mark Zuckerberg

This six-month-old startup is nearing Google-backed Dunzo's valuation by delivering groceries in 10 mins

<ul><li><keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> is now valued at a whopping $900 million, after raising $200 million.</li><li>The funding round was led by Y Combinator Continuity fund and Kaiser Permanente.</li><li>The company has already hired 1000 employees so far and plans to hire 1000 more this year</li></ul>Quick commerce startup Zepto — founded by two 19-year-old Stanford dropouts nine months ago — is now valued at a whopping $900 million. The company, on Monday night, announced that it has raised $200 million. The funding round was led by Y Combinator Continuity fund and Kaiser Permanente. All key existing investors, including Nexus Venture Partners, Glade Brook Capital and Lachy Groom have also participated in Zepto’s latest Series D round. The company has raised close to $350 million to date and was valued at $560 million in April December 2021. <table style="border-width: initial; border-style: none; table-layout: fixed; width: 468pt;" class="redcator-table-advance"><colgroup></colgroup><col /><col /><tbody><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Month </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Event </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">April 2021 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Founded </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">November 2021 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Raised $60 million, at $225 million valuation </td></tr><tr><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">December 2021 </td><td style="border-left:solid #000000 1pt;border-right:solid #000000 1pt;border-bottom:solid #000000 1pt;border-top:solid #000000 1pt;vertical-align:top;padding:5pt 5pt 5pt 5pt;overflow:hidden;overflow-wrap:break-word;">Raised $100 million at the valuation of $570 million </td></tr></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody><tbody></tbody></table>Source: Zepto Zepto’s chief executive officer (CEO) and cofounder Aadit Palicha, highlighted that the company has reported 800% increase in its revenue on a quarterly basis. Secondly, the cash burn of the company has come down by a fifth on a pre-order basis. The company also claims to maintain an Net Promoter Score (NPS) — a metric that companies use to measure customer loyalty — at 88-points, he noted. “This unbelievable execution over the past few months has made it clear to investors that Zepto will be one of the winners in Indian Q-Commerce,” he emphasised. The company is also piloting several services to deliver coffee, tea and items from local cafes — termed as ‘Zepto Cafe’ — in under 10 minutes across selected areas in Mumbai. The company plans to scale this service, which is not a food delivery vertical as per Zepto, across India if the pilot is successful. Zepto was founded by Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra in April 2021, and it currently delivers 3,500 products across 11 cities in 10 minutes flat. These services are available in Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Ghaziabad and other cities. Zepto plans to start its operations in another dozen cities in the near future. “We not only want to just expand across the country but we also want to double down on the team we have built because frankly creating a $900 million company in nine month is an insane achievement. Frankly, the team has had everything to do with that,” Palicha told Business Insider. He noted that the company has already hired 1000 people across functions over the last few months and plans to hire another 1000 in the next one year. The first round of hiring was focused on all verticals — engineering, analytics, operations, marketing, finance, and human resources (HR). The second round would be focused on tech and product. The<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/newsletter-23-december-2021/binewsletter/88440534.cms"> competition in the quick commerce segment</a> has increased significantly even since the second half of 2021. Zepto competes with Reliance-backed Duzno, Swiggy Instamart, Zomato-backed Blinkit (Grofers) and now Tata-backed BigBazaar. SEE ALSO <a class="tout-title-link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/adani-wilmar-revenue-rockets-fuelled-by-boiling-edible-oil-prices/articleshow/91260794.cms"></a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/its-open-india-now-has-a-century-of-unicorns/articleshow/91254798.cms">It's Open — India now has a century of unicorns</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/upi-reached-new-heights-with-5-58-billion-transactions-in-april-2022/articleshow/91250099.cms">UPI reaches new heights with 5.58 billion transactions in April 2022</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/byjus-swiggy-and-ten-other-startups-raised-the-biggest-round-last-quarter/slidelist/91251672.cms">Byju's, Swiggy and ten other startups raised nearly $4 billion last quarter</a>

These two 19-year-olds scaled Zepto into a $900 million company in nine months

<ul><li>Quick grocery delivery app <keyword id="12437554" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="zepto" source="Orion">Zepto</keyword> has raised $100 million in a Series C round. </li><li>Zepto had earlier raised $60 million only 45 days ago, at a valuation of $225 million.</li><li>It expanded its presence to Bengaluru, Delhi, Gurgaon, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune in the last two months.</li></ul>Quick grocery delivery app Zepto — founded by two 19 year old Stanford dropouts only seven months ago — is now valued at $570 million by marquee investors of the Indian startup ecosystem. Zepto was founded by Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, and it currently delivers 2,500 products in 10 minutes flat. The company, on December 21, announced that it has raised $100 million in a Series C round led by Y Combinator’s Continuity Fund. New and existing investors, including Glade Brook, Nexus, Breyer Capital, Lachy Groom, Global Founders Capital, Contrary Capital and others. Zepto had earlier raised<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/this-six-month-old-startup-is-nearing-google-backed-dunzos-valuation-by-delivering-groceries-in-10-mins/articleshow/87457816.cms"> $60 million only 45 days ago</a>, at a valuation of $225 million. The company claims to have expanded its presence from Mumbai to Bengaluru, Delhi, Gurgaon, Chennai, Hyderabad and Pune in the last two months. The company is now looking to enter Kolkata. Zepto’s valuation is now nearly double of Google-backed <keyword id="3275685" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="dunzo" source="Orion">Dunzo</keyword>, which is among the oldest players in the domain. The company was said to be valued at <a href="https://entrackr.com/2021/03/exclusive-dunzos-valuation-crosses-300-mn/">$300 million </a>in March 2021, when the company raised $8 million. Another competitor Swiggy, which started its <keyword id="9728281" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="instamart" source="Orion">InstaMart</keyword> offering in 2020, has decided to invest $700 million in the domain and enable 5 minutes delivery. Meanwhile, <keyword id="2466939" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="grofers" source="Orion">Grofers</keyword> has decided to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/grofers-founder-explains-why-he-rushed-to-rebrand-the-startup-and-his-plans-seem-ambitious/articleshow/88320706.cms">rebrand its entire billion dollar business</a> to <keyword id="12724311" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="blinkit" source="Orion">Blinkit</keyword> in order to showcase its focus on 10 minute delivery. The company <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/ecommerce/news/grofers-has-now-shutdown-18-location-after-rebranding-to-blinkit-heres-how-you-can-check-if-deliveries-are-available-in-your-locality/articleshow/88389021.cms">decided to shut down operations in 18 cities</a>, and focus only on 12 cities for now. “Investors are consistently choosing to back Zepto because of our best-in-class execution. This is giving us incredible momentum - we’re growing at a phenomenal rate, customers are loving the product experience, our core unit economics are strong, and we have one of the best startup teams in India today. Suffice it to say, I’m excited about what’s to come,” Aadit Palicha, cofounder and chief executive (CEO) of Zepto, said. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/banks/news/lic-owned-idbi-bank-gets-hit-by-6710-crore-loan-default-by-a-diamond-merchant-the-biggest-since-nirav-modi/articleshow/88392370.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">LIC-owned IDBI Bank gets hit by ₹6,710 crore loan default by a diamond merchant, the biggest since Nirav Modi</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/kavin-bharti-mittals-hike-is-offering-eth-to-anyone-who-find-a-chief-meme-officer-or-a-crypto-game-economist-for-the-company/articleshow/88388082.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Kavin Bharti Mittal's Hike is offering ETH to anyone who find a 'chief meme officer' or a 'crypto game economist' for the company</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/how-do-rising-covid-19-cases-lead-to-a-fall-in-markets/articleshow/88385905.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Why is the stock market falling so sharply today?</a>

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Zepto raises USD 665 million; Valuation nearly triples to USD 3.6 billion

PTI

What Funding Winter? Zepto raises $200 mn to become the first unicorn of 2023

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Zepto secures USD 340 million in latest funding round, boosting valuation to USD 5 billion

BI India Bureau

Adani replaces Ambani to become wealthiest Indian with a net worth of Rs 11.6 lakh crores

PTI

Zepto appoints Ankit Agarwal as chief product officer to drive innovation in fulfilment

BI India Bureau

Zepto preps for public listing in 2 years; Brings in Ramesh Bafna as CFO to lead IPO process

Malini Bhupta

Gautam Adani, Mukesh Ambani account for 59% of India’s top 10 billionaires’ wealth

Rounak Jain

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234-year-old company EID Parry is only a tad more valuable than year-old unicorn GlobalBees

Vaamanaa Sethi

This six-month-old startup is nearing Google-backed Dunzo's valuation by delivering groceries in 10 mins

IANS

These two 19-year-olds scaled Zepto into a $900 million company in nine months

Kritti Bhalla

Two teenage Stanford dropouts have made their startup worth half a billion in 7 months

Kritti Bhalla