India’s food delivery race is hotting up after Swiggy, one of the startups vying for pole position, landed $210 million in new capital for expansion and joined the billion-dollar startup unicorn club.
The investment is led by existing backer Naspers, the media conglomerate famous for an early bet on Tencent in China, and new investor DST Global. Others taking part in the round include returning investor China’s Meituan Dianping and (another new investor) Coatue Management.
The deal takes Swiggy’s valuation past the $1 billion mark for the first time. Sources with knowledge of negotiations told TechCrunch that it values the company at around $1.3 billion. There’s perhaps not a tonne of surprise around today’s announcement since it has been rumored in the Indian press for some time, with Economic Times first reporting on it in April.