Fintech Unicorn BharatPe’s Delhi Warehouse Gutted In Fire

A fire broke out at one of the warehouses of fintech unicorn BharatPe in Delhi in the early hours of June 29, resulting in a loss of about INR 50 Lakh.

BharatPe’s PoS devices, furniture, documents, among other items, were gutted in the fire.

The building housed the BharatPe warehouse on the ground floor and a cloud kitchen on the first floor, Inc42 learnt on visiting the site in South Delhi’s Malviya Nagar.

“The staff from the cloud kitchen first noticed the smoke at around 2-2:30 am in the night (June 29, 2023) and immediately alerted the fire department. This is when BharatPe’s team were also alerted,” a BharatPe official present on the ground said. 

The fire was brought under control after over an hour by two fire engines. No guard or employees were present at the BharatPe warehouse when the fire broke out.

“Prima facie, it seems that a short-circuit was the primary cause of the fire. We will understand more as we investigate this matter,” a BharatPe source said.

Meanwhile, the fintech unicorn in a statement said, “An unfortunate incident occurred at BharatPe’s warehouse last night.The incident was reported to the authorities, and emergency services responded promptly to ensure the safety of the surrounding areas. The affected warehouse primarily stored faulty or discarded devices. Our preliminary estimates indicate a loss of under INR 50 Lakh. We are in touch with the authorities and are working diligently to assess the situation thoroughly.”

Another company source also said that faulty equipment was kept in the warehouse but pegged the loss at around INR 1 Cr. 

Founded in 2018, BharatPe enables merchants to accept online payments through QR codes and PoS devices. Last year, the startup also entered the buy now pay later segment with the launch of PostPe. It has raised over $580 Mn till date and competes with the likes of Paytm, PhonePe, among others. 

The unicorn reported a loss of INR  5,610.7 Cr in FY22, up 3.4X from INR 1,619.2 Cr. Meanwhile, revenue from operations rose 283% year-on-year to INR 456.8 Cr during the year.

BharatPe is currently involved in a legal battle with its former MD Ashneer Grover. Earlier this year, BhartPe CEO Suhail Sameer also stepped down from his role.