Latest Updated on 09 February 2023
Meesho, an Indian e-commerce startup, announced Thursday that it has raised $570 million in capital from a group of investors, giving the business a $4.9 billion value.
It follows a capital round when it raised $300 million at a $2.1 billion value less than six months ago. As regulatory uncertainty dampens investor appetite in China, the significant increase in its valuation highlights the rising interest in India's IT industry.
Fidelity Management & Research Company and B Capital Group, both located in the United States, took the lead in the investment. Other previous supporters Prosus Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, and Facebook also took part.
The business's only focus for the upcoming year will be on scaling, according to founder and CEO Vidit Aatrey. "After that, we'll choose the best window of time for going public,"
Meesho was founded in 2015 as an Online Store Selling Clothes mostly to female resellers who get paid fees for recommending the items to their contacts on Social Media sites like WhatsApp. Since then, new product categories have been added, including those for Pet Food and Fitness Devices, and it now sells directly to customers. Meesho makes money through managing delivery and payment as well as by selling adverts to businesses who wish to prominently feature their items on the app.
Aatrey stated that in September, over 17 million users transacted on the platform, which is treble the amount from March. By December 2022, it hopes to reach 100 million people.
Last Updated on 30 September 2021
The Indian startup scene is booming. Even saying that would be an understatement. Earlier this year Zomate put out its IPO which was a huge success and made the company one of the biggest Online Food Apps in the world. Now it’s Meesho. Meesho is an Indian online e-commerce platform that allows local sellers to sell their products and earns from their commission. The app is a huge success across India and has made a lot of people conduct online business successfully. Especially during the pandemic, many sellers, who otherwise would have gone bankrupt, found customers online. Recently, Meesho became a unicorn after it raised $300 from a Japanese Corporation. That alone made Meesho into a huge giant but the recent investment has taken the app to tall new heights.
Meesho raised well over $500 million which has taken its total worth to a massive $4.9 billion. The capital was invested by Fidelity Management & Research Company and Facebook, Inc. CO-Founder Eduardo Saverin’s B Capital Group, among some other investors. This is huge news since it establishes that now Indian startups can get international investors from around the world, be it America or Japan. It will give a huge boost to the morale of many Indian Entrepreneurs who are starting out. It will allow them to contact investors outside India to set up their own Startups. This will also allow many foreign investors to venture into the Indian startup scene.