Ankit Mehrotra, CFA

Deal Announcement – Complete transaction in Less than 3 months! Maiz Kitchens, a first of its kind modern QSR chain that believes in serving fresher, healthier fast food at an affordable price, successfully closed its Series A fundraise. Founded by Veer Bharatiya, Maiz is poised to replicate the Chipotle story in India! Radix acted as the Exclusive banker for this transaction which was closed in less than 3 months’ timeframe! What does Maiz’s super quick Series A turnaround tell us? In one line, despite how the larger macro environment, whether it's the Funding winter or the preceding Unicorn race, Investors fundamentally are always looking to unearth those Diamonds in the rough. Startups with strong fundamentals, visionary leaders, proven execution capability and large TAMs don’t have to rely solely on burning investor money for growth. These companies are always poised to leverage their customer love and execution strength to get the likeminded and right investment partners for targeting next big milestone. Maiz is one such diamond! 4 things that worked in favour of Maiz: o  A great team with clear vision and phenomenal execution capability. o  A solid plan executed to last decimal point details. o  Abundance of customer love which is visible in stellar Unit Economics. o  Super nimble approach of management with clear focus on Capital Efficiency Maiz is both a testament and validation of the Radix way! At Radix, we pride ourselves in being able to spot these gems. We are always long-term partners with the founding team and do our part in materializing their vision. Today, Radix Capital Advisors takes immense pleasure in announcing the successful closure of INR 21.5 Cr Series A fundraise for Maiz Kitchens. All the best to Maiz team! Brace yourself for the next Maiz outlet in your city! Congratulations Veer Bhartiya Rahul Chhabria, Pratiksha Barasia Maya Taparia Ashish Chacko Akash Bagul Mahesh Triplicane Damodaran Vignesh Ramanan Maiz Kitchens Radix Capital Advisors Yash Vora   Keep Spicing Up and Scaling New Heights – Onwards & Upwards ! #startups #SeriesA #Fundraise #DealAlert #consumer

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To VC or not I came across two separate notes yesterday. One where Zomato and PolicyBazaar (InfoEdge is the common and largest investor) topped the charts on the market cap of all the 20-30 tech IPOs in the last few years. And the second about 65% IRR growth of Rohit and Kunal's investment. It got me thinking of operating entrepreneurs are yielding impressive returns compared to regular VC's Most first time founders get lured into raising VC funding as they get instant recognition from their social circle. But they suffer unimaginably. 1. The day they raise VC funding they cease to be an entrepreneur but a glorified CEO/senior exec working over time and severely under compensated. 2. Most VC's don't like founders to take enough salary (barely to make ends meet) and they don't like them to sell shares till they get an exit. I meet so many first time founders who are proud of this act of sacrifice hoping for a glorious victory at the end of it all. Their first time romance of entrepreneurship and gullibility gets exploited by VC's who misguide them at times to go without salaries/comp leaving them torn between family care and business priorities. 3. VC's like to invest in high growth, strong businesses with low risk(ideally, showing signs of profitability already) but as soon as they invest, they want the company to grow 100X continuously citing examples from the silicon valley of that one company which did amazing. They only care about the "power law" which is even 2-3 of their 10 investments work, they make enough but in that process the poor first time founder gives the best years of his life to the startup in vain as unwinding from this mindless experimentation and growth is nearly impossible 4. VC's celebrate Job's brashness or Travis's aggression and calls you a weak or a soft founder if you grow and manage business sensibly without undue aggression. They steadily try to influence your character and personality through stories of inspiration of "aggressors" but the moment you get there, ditch you for your insolence. 5. VC's don't bring any operating experience but have high conviction coming from their gut experience and reading a book or two on silicon valley startups. The reality of India dawns on to them after 10-20 years of investing and by that time, several founders have wasted their most productive years getting misguided by the intuition and gut feelings of the inexperienced VC's What's the solution - 1. There are some ideas that need VC capital and some don't - anything that required deep tech, strong network effects (mobility), research need VC capital. 2. Good businesses (so already existing business models getting improved by tech/AI etc) should not need too much VC capital. They should treat VC capital as an expensive debt and don't get influenced by VC's too much (discipline is key here). Example - D2C, or SAAS, or Edtech or Traveltech or such.

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It is fabulous to see the growing interest in Angel Investments in Startups.. The news of Mamaearth stocks and also those of Zomato, Policy Bazar etc doing so well and making many new millionaires is definitely helping the cause. Some of these angel investors are beneficiaries of exits and esops and hence believe in this asset class, while others are looking to build such breakout events in their lives. Yet there are others who thrive in the ecosystem and enjoy riding the wave while making profits or losses from it. Whatever is the motivation, this space needs to be tread with caution. As a lead investor of our syndicate VG Angels at VentureGarage and having over a decade of experience in this space, I often advice my fellow angel investors the following: 1. Angel Investment is probably the riskiest asset class and requires patience. If you want to be one, then invest in 7-8 cos in 3 years or so and then expect a breakout in the 4th year from one of them. 2. There are over 20000 startups registering in the country every year, it is almost impossible for you to source and then invest in one of the top 20 of those. Follow a syndicate lead investor or a curated angel network for the deal flow and evaluation. 3. Founders are not looking for your mentorship. Invest in them first and then maybe you can mentor them. Definitely do not invest in founders who need your active guidance. 4. Learn about the future opportunities and build your thesis around some sectors. Learning new stuff is one of the big requirements and motivators of angel investments after all. Invest in those sectors which you are bullish about. Happy investing! https://lnkd.in/g2xx3zBX

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The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has proposed easing angel fund regulations and opening up these funds to more diverse investor groups. In a major step, the regulatory body will soon allow family trusts and sole proprietorships to invest in angel funds.   These measures are likely to boost opportunities for startup funding and supply young ventures with essential capital for growth, highlighting SEBI’s commitment to cultivating a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in the country. Read more: https://lnkd.in/g3aGwgJP #StartupFunding #AngelInvestors #SEBINorms #Innovation #Entrepreneurship #IndiaStartups #BusinessGrowth #StartupEcosystem

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Yesterday we officially announced Gemba Capital Fund-II with a target corpus of $30Mn (INR 250 Cr) to invest in seed & pre-seed stage scalable tech startups led by founders who have an unwavering ambition to build world-class businesses. We started in 2018, investing for friends & family and then started our own angel syndicate and then raised our Fund-I. The journey has been long and full of learnings. We are here for the long term and there are no shortcuts. Each one of us at Gemba Capital are entrepreneurs at heart, who just happen to be in the VC business. Over the years, we have tried our best to manage expectations of our portfolio founders and our LPs. There is heartfelt gratitude for all our well-wishers, who have supported us time and again. It takes a village to raise a VC fund. We will continue to do our job, the best we can and build Gemba Capital into a fine homegrown VC institution. Our DNA is pre-seed and seed round investing. Our strategy remains the same over the years. 3 focus sectors and a 30-company portfolio built over the next 3 years. https://lnkd.in/gk3JEKps Gemba Capital Govind Lohia Kamini Shivalkar Shashank Gupta Vipul Rawal ↗️ Anupreet Singh 📈 Sujoy Chakravarty Nutgraf PR and Media Advisory

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It is often said that Impact investing does not deliver financial returns. At C4D Partners, we are proving this wrong. Our Fund 1 has already achieved a 51% DPI on the India portfolio within 6 years of fund life, delivering a robust IRR. We’re not just about investing for impact, but also prioritizing strong, sustainable financial returns. We carefully select companies that are cash flow positive and demonstrate a clear path to profitability within a couple of years of our investment. This has enabled us to keep our mortality rate under 20%, lower than the industry average. Our approach - We invest in early-growth stage companies that are well-governed and on a clear path to positive cash flows, and be there for the long haul. Our approach comprises not just capital infusion, but active involvement in fostering a culture of transparency, operational excellence and sustainable value creation. We position our investments for sustainability and success in an ever-evolving market. If you’re a startup or investor interested in partnering with us, or just curious to learn more, let’s connect. Mirakle Couriers, Ecotasar, LabourNet, Saahas Zero Waste, Aarohan , 1BRIDGE, Ananya Finance, Freyr Energy Services Pvt Ltd #VentureCapital #Startups #SMEs #GrowthCapital #InvestmentStrategy #C4DPartners

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Smart riders adapt to the turns. DSP BUSINESS CYCLE FUND – New Fund Offer @ Rs. 10/- available till 11th Dec 2024. (An open ended equity scheme following business cycles based investing theme ) Benefits : * Framework-driven selection of industries & companies with high growth /turnaround potential * Does not shy away from taking cash calls or using other risk management strategies * Recommended holding period of 5+ years  * Flexibility that allows for aggressive allocation of significant weights to industries in an upcycle * Suitable for all market phases given its unconstrained nature Focused on identifying strong industry cycles * Unconstrained by market cap: Can include companies from large, mid, small, and micro caps.  * Sector & Industry evaluation: After grouping the investment universe into broader sectors, the evaluation is done at industry level. * Industry Preference: Prefers industries near the bottom of the cycle with the potential for improving or strong fundamentals but trading at low valuations compared to benchmark and on an absolute basis. * Forensic evaluation: Exclude companies with weak corporate governance with the help of dedicated forensic analysts even if they have strong growth expectations * Stock Selection: Identifying stocks from industries which have high growth potential, improving fundamentals & higher potential upside. Such stocks shall be given higher weights N J Fin Plan recommends to invest- Insure, based on your financial goals & risk appetite. N J Fin Plan can offer Mutual Fund Investments, Life, Health, Motor & Travel Insurance Online. To open E-wealth account with N J Fin Plan http://p.njw.bz/55096 Call / Write  N J Financial Planning Off No.15, Kappeesh Mall, Near Mulund Railway Station, M G Road, Mulund West, Mumbai 400 080 +98924 22480 / [email protected] www.njfinplan.com #financialplanning #wealthcreation #mumbai #sip #india #swp #mutualfunds

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We at LeapFrog Investments are strong believers in the India story for impact investments. As I mentioned to Jaden, India has a lot of potential. It’s not a five-year story, it’s hopefully a 25-year story.... the reasons being growth, depth of talent, digital public infrastructure, and the depth of capital markets. Thanks to Jaden Paul for the interview in Business Standard. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/gyV-UTAv

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Today's Headlines from : *Economic Times* 📝 3,638 FDI proposals cleared in sensitive sectors since 2019 📝 NARCL ups offer for Jaiprakash Associates debt to Rs 12,000 crore 📝 Festivals take e-toll collections to a record ₹6,000 crore in October 📝 Railways switches to fast track for Kavach rollout 📝 India tops global diabetes list with 212 million cases in 2022: Lancet Study 📝 Nokia to roll out 3,300 new 4G sites by March for Vi expansion 📝 Morgan Stanley, 2 others pick 6.8 pc stake in PNB Housing Fin for Rs 1,664 crore 📝 Nalco Q2 Results: Profit rises multi-fold to Rs 1,046 crore; Rs 4 per share dividend announced 📝 NBCC Q2 Results: Profit jumps 53% to Rs 125.13 crore 📝 Kalpataru Projects International bags orders worth Rs 2,273 crore 📝 Ecommerce AI startup BiteSpeed raised USD 3.5 million 📝 SaaS startup Zeplyn raises $3 million from Leo Capital, others 📝 Space startup Firefly valued at over $2 billion in latest funding round *Business Standard* 📝 Brigade Enterprises Q2FY25 results: Reports 46% increase in sales value 📝 Marriott International, Samhi Hotels ink pact to open 3 properties in India 📝 India's Adani Group to invest $10 billion in US energy following Trump win 📝 Dilip Buildcon Q2 results: Net profit rises threefold to Rs 235 crore 📝 ONGC to soon open 5 wells in KG basin to boost gas, crude output in H2FY25 📝 NCLAT directs IL&FS to complete resolution of remaining firms by March 31 📝 ICAI to knock on MCA door against proposed audit standard revision 📝 India's outward FDI rises to $3.7 billion in October 2024: RBI data 📝 Mkt regulator Sebi mulls action for lapses in Artificial intelligence usage 📝 Festive season stabilises PV sales, 2Ws jump 14%; over 393K vehicles sold *Financial Express* 📝 Economists revise FY25 CPI inflation estimates to 4.7-5 per cent 📝 IN-SPACe taps DoT to cut spectrum price for Spacetech startups 📝 Eicher Motors Q2 profit rises 8 per cent to Rs 1,100 crore 📝 Power ministry readies interest subvention scheme for MSMEs 📝 Karnataka to organise venture capital connect with $17 billion investment potential 📝 IPO-bound NTPC Green plans to invest Rs 1 lakh crore by FY27 📝 Indebtedness of states expected to remain rangebound at 31-32% this fiscal, says CRISIL *Mint* 📝 US October inflation rises 2.6% YoY in first annual acceleration since March 📝 UN to come up with solutions to support countries cope with extreme heat 📝 BII, Norfund, IndiGrid form $300 million business for battery storage 📝 AstraZeneca Q2 net profit declines 10%, revenue up 31% 📝 Torrent Power Q2 Results: Net profit falls 8.6% YoY to ₹496 crore 📝 RBI retains SBI, HDFC, ICICI as India's too-big-to-fail banks 📝 Prosus offers to invest $100 million in Mintifi Finserve at unicorn valuation

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I’ve always been skeptical about D2C brands for a few reasons. With today's democratization of the internet and knowledge, anyone with enough distribution power can create a D2C brand. We’re seeing this trend with social media influencers launching their own brands and generating massive revenue simply by leveraging their following. It’s no longer just about the product; it's about distribution power, which can make the market feel unfair. Most D2C brands in India rely heavily on digital channels like e-commerce and quick commerce, believing that’s enough to drive significant revenue—and for many, it has been. Digital sales have allowed some brands to scale quickly, but that’s not the whole game. The real challenge, and where most D2C brands struggle, is offline distribution, which is a complex maze. The few brands that figure this out, like Mamaearth, go on to win big. After interacting with Abhishek kaushik and learning about MITRA's journey, I realized they’re doing something completely different. While most brands are focused on going online, MITRA is building a strong offline presence in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, where their semi-premium, high-quality products have a real edge. Despite competing with giants like ITC, MITRA's key advantage is offering the same premium experience that people in Tier 1 cities enjoy but at an affordable price—and in stores that are easily accessible to Tier 2 and 3 consumers. These consumers watch the same content and aspire for the same products but often lack access to the D2C brands popular in metro cities. MITRA bridges that gap, offering a unique value proposition in these underserved markets. I’m highly optimistic about MITRA’s future and excited to see their expansion into international markets. At Beej Network, our goal is simple: we invest in companies that have the potential to go global, and MITRA is definitely one of those companies. #angelinvestment #indianstartups #FMCG #D2C #D2Cstartups #foodstartups #startupinvestment #indianinvestment #startupfunding #fundingalert #venturecapital #VCworld #venture

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💲💲 If you are a D2C Consumer Brand Startup you should know this VC that invests in pre-revenue stage Startups! 💰 VC Background: Meet Sauce VC a Cat II VC that launched their first fund in 2019 with a modest corpus of INR 60 Cr and since then launched 3 more funds and made 33 investments. Their recent INR 365 cr Fund launched in Aug'24 plans to invest in 20-25 consumer brands. They pick 6-7 selective investments annually out of 3000+ deck they get. However, their Fund I has a success rate of 50% (not a bad idea to invest in the fund if you are a UHNI). Infact their Fund IV was oversubscribed 3 times. 💰Notable Investments: Mokobora, Hocco Ice cream, Supertails, Innovist, The Whole Truth etc 💰Stage at which they invest: They invest even at pre-revenue stage to early traction stages. Ideally this VC invests at pre-seed to Series A. 💰What do they look for: Taking call at pre-revenue stage is really tough, especially in Consumer Brand segment. Hence, they look for founders who have deep experience in the segment either by the family background or by the founder's professional background. However, if the founder is not well-versed with the D2C game, they are cool with it. But the founder should know the segment, scope for new brands and plan to differentiate the brand. 💰Ideal cheque size: $ 1 Mn. But can go up to $ 5 Mn. 💰Investment Style: Sauce VC prefers working along with the founders to ensure the success of the Startup. They lead the rounds at pre-seed and Series A stages. Once the Startup is into Series B, they take a back seat and only participate in the following rounds. 💡 Hope this helps. Share it with some great founder of a consumer brand who is at early stages and needs to know this. If you want a warm-introduction, DM me or let me know in the comments. Bhavesh K Jatania Raunaq JaisinghaniAshish SharmaMohit Kanjwani

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A significant milestone on the Sarvagram journey and we are very excited to continue our support to the stellar team. When we invested in 2022, we saw a distinctive company which was serving an unaddressed segment in a very large market i.e middle class households in rural India. The narrative around rural financing has primarily focused on farmers and low-income populations. However, there's a huge gap in addressing the needs of the aspirational rural middle class—the 80-100 million households with annual incomes ranging from ₹3-5L, spread across multiple income sources. This demographic is eager to improve both their income levels and quality of life, yet their financial needs have often gone unmet. Banks and microfinance institutions have targeted agriculture or low-income women but the rural middle class is a large whitespace. Though they may have access to product financing like two-wheeler or car loans, a significant portion of their aspirations remains unaddressed. SarvaGram is stepping into this gap with a holistic, customer-centric platform that offers a diverse range of financial services—from lending products and farm mechanization solutions to insurance offerings — as opposed to a mono-line strategy, which we believe works better in denser urban markets. In addition to our thesis on rural lending, we have found working with the stellar team, led by Utpal Isser and Sameer Mishra, a collaborative and insightful partnership. Their exceptional execution and understanding of the rural market have enabled SarvaGram to create lasting impact and drive sustainable growth. It has been equally enjoyable to learn from their experiences and we truly appreciate the openness of team. We have also appreciated working with our co-passengers from #Elevar, #Elevation and #Temasek and look forward to the #Peak XV team. With this fundraise, SarvaGram is on track to continue its impressive growth trajectory and we are excited to be part of this journey of SarvaGram driving meaningful change for rural middle-class households. Utpal Isser SarvaGram Sreeraman V TVS Capital Funds #FundingSuccess #RuralIndia

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It was truly a wonderful experience chatting with Shrishti Sahu, Managing Partner of Swadharma Source Ventures - SSV, on the SenseAI Ventures podcast show! I thoroughly enjoyed our conversation, delving into her first-hand experiences in private investing. Shrishti stands out as one of the most promising young tech investors in the ecosystem, and her insights were both inspiring and enlightening. If you haven't already, check out the full episode where we explore more about her journey and investing perspectives!

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*Economic Times* 📝 IHCL acquires majority shareholding in operating company of Tree of Life 📝 Company registrations on downhill trek, down 22% in October 📝 Swiggy raises Rs 5,085 crore from anchor investors ahead of IPO launch 📝 Govt to sell up to 2.5% stake in Hindustan Zinc through OFS 📝 Salesforce India FY24 profit jumps 40% to Rs 888 crore 📝 GAIL Q2 Results: Profit rises 11% to Rs 2,672 crore, revenue up 3.5% 📝 NBCC secures Rs 500 cr contract from BIS 📝 India, Kazakhstan to set up a JV in critical minerals sector 📝 Marut Drones raises $6.2 million from Lok Capital 📝 QubeHealth raises pre-series A funding from UIV, CanBank 📝 Deep-tech startup CastNX raises ₹ 23.22 cr from Arpit Khandelwal 📝 Wealth fund INA and VC firm Granite plan to invest $1.2 billion in Indonesia tech *Business Standard* 📝 L&T to acquire 21% stake in E2E Networks in two-part Rs 1,406 crore deal 📝 Manappuram Finance Q2 results: PAT up 2% at Rs 571 cr on gold loan boost 📝 Will launch 3 biosimilars globally in 2-3 years: Biocon Biologics CEO & MD 📝 Shriram General Insurance eyes listing in 3 years, Q2 net profit up 17% 📝 Oil India Q2 results: Net profit rises multi-fold to Rs 2,016 crore 📝 Fidelity increases IPO-bound Lenskart valuation by 12% to $5.6 billion 📝 Apollo Green Energy prepares for IPO, eyes Rs 10,000 cr portfolio by 2025 📝 CBDT allows tax officials to waive or reduce interest due from taxpayers 📝 Bharat Connect clocks Rs 1 trillion in transaction value in October 📝 India joins race to host 2036 Olympics with formal letter of intent to IOC 📝 India's domestic air tariff up 43% in 5 years, just behind Vietnam *Financial Express* 📝 Morgan Stanley opens new GCC in Mumbai 📝 Udaan’s growth stalls, losses down 19 per cent in FY24 📝 Energy demand in India to jump 35 per cent, power capacity triple by 2035 📝 Vanguard cuts Ola’s valuation to $2 billion 📝 Kharif output seen up 5.4 per cent, to boost rural income *Mint* 📝 US yields mixed as election risks rise after solid 10-year note auction 📝 L&T boosts AI, data centre ambitions with E2E Networks deal 📝 US trade deficit widens to over two year-high in September 2024 on import boost 📝 Dr. Reddy’s to expand GLP-1 portfolio eyeing obesity and diabetes drug markets 📝 DCGI frames rules for imported cosmetics 📝 JSW Steel and Korean steel-maker eye $7.7 billion investment in Odisha plant 📝 Titan Q2 Results: Net profit falls 23% to ₹704 crore; revenue rises 25.8% YoY 📝 NMDC board to consider bonus issue for first time in 16 years on November 11 📝 Muthoottu Mini Financiers launches NCD issue to raise ₹150 crore 📝 UN report calls for trillions in climate finance to aid developing countries

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🍷 Sula Vineyards: Seed to IPO (a 4000 Crore Company) | Ep12: The India Opportunity Podcast ft Chaitanya Rathi, Partner at Sharrp Ventures | Harsh Mariwala Investment Office 🍷 Watch here: https://lnkd.in/gE-ZHDCz We talk about: > Early experiences in alco-bev space in Scotland led to Chaitanya finding his way to Sula Vineyards > Saw it as a seed stage company, and was instrumental in launching Wine Tourism in India to make Sula - the world's most visited vineyard in the world! > How during COVID, Sula hit ZERO revenues (very close to its IPO) and how the team improved the company's financial metrics through the period > What it takes to become an IPO-able company - The process, the mindset and the preparation - it literally takes a village > Evaluation for investment criteria both as an angel and a fund manager > Leverage Edu's remarkable turnaround during the pandemic, we talk about Akshay Chaturvedi's journey > Lessons from investing in legendary consumer brands in India such as Veeba, epigamia, Woodsmen Mountain Whiskey and themes he's interested in > The evolution of the consumer landscape in India both from a market expansion and funding perspective > How being an operator helps CR be a better investor and partner to portfolio companies What a gold mine of an episode! Deep and rich insights from the consumer sector from someone who has not only invested but also built iconic companies. Must listen for founders. #consumer #D2C #sula #investing #publicmarkets #angelinvestors #alcobev

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A series where we highlight Gemba Capital's Portfolio companies' every week. Simple post - no gyaan and no bakwaas :) This week meet Pramod Rao and Abhishek Nalin from Threado AI Kamini Shivalkar Aditya Vargante Govind Lohia Vipul Rawal ↗️ ️Anupreet Singh 📈 Sujoy Chakravarty #meetourportfolio #earlystage #venturecapital #startups #tech #india #portfolio

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Swiggy’s IPO: A New Era or Over-Hyped Gamble? Swiggy’s IPO surprised the market, listing at a premium and trading 20% higher than its issue price. With its valuation now crossing ₹1 lakh crore, comparisons to Zomato are inevitable. Here’s the lay of the land: Zomato’s Edge: ₹700 crore profit, 54% gross order value growth, 20.3 million monthly transacting users. Swiggy’s Challenge: ₹2,300 crore loss, 6% higher gross order value but lower user base. Both companies are investing heavily in quick-commerce, where Blinkit and Instamart are seeing rapid adoption. Yet, Swiggy’s profitability timeline (FY28) leaves investors questioning its ability to match Zomato’s success. Is Swiggy a dark horse, or is the risk too high for long-term investors? Valuation is one thing, but profitability is the real game-changer. What’s your take—would you invest in Swiggy at this stage?

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