Deepinder Goyal, the founder and CEO of Zomato, has achieved billionaire status following a significant surge in Zomato's stock prices. The shares of the online food delivery platform soared by 4% today, reaching a record high of Rs 232 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).
This rally marks a remarkable increase of over 300% since its low in July 2023, propelling Zomato's market capitalization beyond Rs 1.9 lakh crore and Goyal's personal net worth to over Rs 8,000 crore. At 41 years old, Goyal now stands as India's richest professional manager.
The surge in Zomato's stock price can be attributed to the robust performance of its quick commerce business, Blinkit. Blinkit has outpaced competitors like Swiggy Instamart and Zepto, showing promising signs of profitability earlier than expected.
Zomato anticipates Blinkit to achieve EBITDA break-even by the first quarter of fiscal 2025, bolstered by the profitability of its core food delivery business. Analysts foresee Zomato increasing investments in Blinkit post-break-even, potentially surpassing the gross order value (GOV) of its food delivery segment sooner than previously anticipated.
Despite competitive pressures, Zomato plans to reinforce its market position through strategic investments in Blinkit. While sustainable EBITDA margins for Blinkit might take longer to achieve, the company expects improvements in advertising income, take-rates, and operational efficiencies over time.
According to Goldman Sachs, Blinkit's implied value has surged to $13 billion from $2 billion in March 2023, with a per-share value of Rs 119 compared to Rs 98 for its food delivery counterpart.
Since Zomato's acquisition of Blinkit in 2022 for $568 million, the segment has substantially enhanced its financial health, emerging as the most valuable asset within Zomato's portfolio.
Analysts project Blinkit's gross order value to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 53% from FY2024-27, with GOV and EBITDA potentially surpassing those of Zomato's food delivery business by FY29.
A graduate in Mathematics and Computing from IIT Delhi, Deepinder Goyal co-founded Zomato (originally FoodieBay.com) while employed at Bain & Company. Driven by his passion for food, Goyal transitioned to working full-time on Zomato with initial funding from Info Edge in 2011. The company quickly rose to prominence in India's food tech industry, achieving unicorn status in 2018.