Tata Sons Plans Infusion Into Digital Arm By Mid Next Year

Salt-to-software conglomerate Tata Sons is reportedly planning to infuse capital into its digital arm, Tata Digital, only by mid 2025.

Until then, Tata Digital will have to rely on internal funding and debt financing to propel its growth portfolio.

According to an ET report,  this decision aligns with the company’s broader strategy of enhancing execution, accountability, and return on capital under the leadership of its new chief executive Naveen Tahilyani.

The report further highlights that Tahilyani has implemented tighter spending controls across various Tata Group businesses while maintaining a focus on growth.

Inc42 has reached out to Tata Digital for response on the development. The story will be updated based on the response from the company. 

This comes days after Tata Sons chairman N Chandrasekaran asked the CEOs of group companies to prioritise aggressive growth despite increasing uncertainties in domestic and global markets.

Meanwhile, Tata Digital’s quick commerce arm, BigBasket, faces stiff competition from Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, and Zepto, all of which are ramping up expenses to gain a competitive edge in the quick commerce space.

Not to mention, BigBasket is also said to be contemplating tapping into public markets for an IPO in the coming years. 

It is pertinent to note that the fiscal year 2023-24 FY24 has churned positive for Tata Digital as it narrowed its standalone losses to INR 1,201 Cr from INR 1,370 Cr in the previous year.

In alignment with this, Tata Digital’s total turnover also more than doubled to INR 420.5 Cr from INR 204.3 Cr in FY23. 

However, several Tata Group companies like Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), Tata Motors, Tata Steel, and Tata Power saw single-digit revenue growth in the first half of FY25. This was reinforced by a slowdown in profits for a similar number of firms. 

Tata Digital also witnessed several developments in its brands like Croma and Tata Neu. Last month, Croma, one of the highest revenue contributors to Tata Neu, appointed Shibashish Roy as its new CEO with a mandate to drive growth post-restructuring. 

In the same month, Tata Neu piloted its quick commerce delivery service under Neu Flash targeting consumers across various categories including groceries and electronics.

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