Zepto CEO Refutes Deepinder Goyal’s Quick Commerce Cash Burn Claims

Quick commerce unicorn Zepto’s CEO Aadit Palicha took to social media platform LinkedIn to correct Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal over a statement he made while talking to ET. 

Speaking about the intense competition the listed foodtech major has been seeing in the quick commerce segment, Goyal told the publication that Zomato’s quick commerce arm Blinkit’s cash burn rate is about 2-3% of the entire 10-minute deliveries segment while estimating its category share to be in the range of 40-45%. 

While estimating the quarterly burn of the quick commerce industry to be around INR 5,000 Cr, the CEO also claimed that more than half of this burn would be accounted for by Zepto. “Compared to this, we’re burning very low numbers. Last quarter, Blinkit burned around INR 35 Cr per month on an average,” he added.

Based on Goyal’s statement, Zepto’s Palicha ascertained that he was referring to the quick commerce major’s losses to be in the ball park of INR 2,500 Cr per quarter, a statement which the quick commerce startup’s CEO highlighted to be untrue. 

“This statement is verifiably untrue and it will be clear when we publicly file our financial statements. However, I know Deepinder, and I know he has only good intentions; this quote could have been taken out of context or said as an honest mistake,” Palicha said in his post on LinkedIn.

The statement comes as the startup is charging towards an initial public offering (IPO). According to reports, the quick commerce had plans to file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) within this month or April. While the startup has moved its domicile from Singapore to India back in January, it is yet to convert into a public entity, rope in investment bankers for its offering. 

In the startup’s last disclosed financial statement with the MCA, its expenses shot up exponentially. In the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), Zepto spent INR 5,747.21 Cr, up 72% from INR 3,350.09 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Meanwhile, its topline also surged significantly in the fiscal year. The startup’s operating revenue jumped 120% to INR 4,454 Cr during the year under review from INR 2,025.70 Cr in FY23.

While Zepto’s burn for the three quarters of the ongoing fiscal year are yet to be discerned, Goyal claimed that the startup’s burn was in the range of INR 2,200 to INR 2,300 Cr. 

“They have burned INR 2,200-2,300 Cr last quarter and we have burned 4% of that but still gained market share. So how does it matter? We’ll just do the right thing for the business,” Goyal told the publication.

In the quarter under review, Blinkit’s burn also surged exponentially on the back of increased investment by its parent to ward off growing competition. In the December quarter, Blinkit raked in an adjusted EBITDA loss of INR 103 Cr, up nearly 13X  from the INR 8 Cr loss it incurred in the preceding quarter and 15.7% increase from INR 89 Cr in Q3 FY24. Meanwhile, its revenue also grew 117% to INR 1399 Cr in Q3 FY25 from INR 644 Cr in Q3 FY24. 

While Blinkit’s darkstore count surged past 1,000 in the quarter under review, Zomato is doubling down on its bid to secure its leadership position in the ecosystem. On February 24, the foodtech major infused INR 1,500 Cr in its quick commerce arm to enable further expansion. 

Meanwhile, Goyal’s claims of Blinkit’s leadership position in the quick commerce arena have also been supported by brokerage firms. In a report, brokerage firm Citi estimated Blinkit’s market share to be 41%, while Zepto was projected ‘par/higher than Swiggy’, based on data traffic trends and industry reports. 

On the other hand, Bernstein expects Blinkit to build on its dominant position in the quick commerce market even as competition intensifies in the short term due to “early mover advantage” and “strong execution”.

Shares of Zomato were trading 2.79% higher than previous close at INR 228.25 during intraday trade on March 4.