The board members of food tech giant Zomato will meet on June 17 to sign off the acquisition of the quick-commerce platform Blinkit (formally known as Grofers). Before this, in August 2021, Zomato invested around $100 million into Blinkit and revealed its plan to invest a total of $400 million. At that time, Zomato earned a 9.3% stake in Blinkit.
As per reports, the deal was estimated to be with Blinkit at a value of around $700 million which might be reduced now. The reports also stated that Zomato will not require a nod for CCI (Competition Commission Of India) as Zomato is planning to use ‘de minimis’ exemption which is applicable to corporations of a specific size.
On Blinkit’s acquisition, Deepinder Goyal, founder and CEO of Zomato, said, “The interest rate for the loan will be 12 per cent per annum or higher with a tenor of not more than one year. This loan will support the capital requirements of GIPL in the near term and is in line with our stated intent to invest $400 million cash in quick commerce in India over the next two years.”
During the fourth-quarter earnings report, Mr Goyal said: “We have committed to give them a short term loan of up to USD 150 million to fund their short term capital needs. Beyond that, there is nothing to share at this moment.”
Last month, the leading online food delivery platform reported that its combined net loss enlarged to Rs 360 crore at the end of the financial year 2021-22, as expenditures are almost doubled.
