Gupshup’s FY23 Revenue Crosses INR 1,500 Cr Mark, Posts INR 49 Cr Profit

Conversational engagement platform Gupshup saw an increase of over 40% in its operating revenue in the financial year ending on March 31, 2023. The San Francisco-headquartered startup has reported an operating income of INR 1,618.5 Cr in FY23, a 43% jump from INR 1,132.1 Cr it had generated in the previous fiscal year.

The unicorn primarily earns revenue from providing mobile messaging services, mobile advertisement through text messages and software development charges. 

Founded in 2004 by Beerud Sheth, Gupshup claims to send over 10 Bn messages every month to enable conversations with customers and counts Kotak Mahindra Bank, IndusInd Bank, HDFC Bank, Ola, Zomato and Flipkart, among others as its customers.

Including other income, the startup’s total income rose to INR 1,624.5 Cr in FY23, a 42% increase from INR 1,140.7 Cr in FY22. 

It is pertinent to note that this is just the revenue that the startup has done business in India. It also runs operations in the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific, Southeast Asia, Latin America, the EU, the US and Africa. However, it generates 75% of its revenue from India alone.

The $1.4 Bn valued startup saw its net profit increase by 23% to INR 49.2 Cr in FY23 from INR 39.9 Cr it had reported in FY22.

Where Did Gupshup Spend?

The startup’s overall expenditure stood at INR 1,562 Cr in the year under review, a 44% increase from INR 1,084.2 Cr it had spent in FY22.

Connectivity Cost: Gupshup being a CPasS-based startup (communication platform as a service), it spent INR 1,078.3 Cr to telecoms (Airtel, Vodafone) and other communication providers (WhatsApp, Slack) to utilise their communication networks. This was the startup’s biggest expense, which contributed to 69% of the total expenditure. In FY22, the startup spent INR 814 Cr for the connectivity cost.

Employee Benefits Cost: The startup has spent INR 213.2 Cr to pay its employees their salaries and other employee welfare benefits. This year’s employee benefit expenses were 93% higher than INR 110.6 Cr it had spent in FY22. 

The startup has raised over $400 Mn across multiple rounds and counts Tiger Global, Fidelity Management and Research, Think Investments, Malabar Investments, and Harbor Spring Capital among its marquee investors. However, late last year, the startup saw one of its investors – Fidelity marking down the valuation of its own shares in Gupshup. 

The startup last year announced UPI payments for feature phone users via a native app called GSPay.

In 2022, the startup had also been on an acquisition spree. It went on to acquire OneDirect,Knowlarity, AI startup Active.Ai and AI startup AskSid within a span of five months.

Gupshup competes against the likes of Yalochat, Twilio and Zendesk, among others.