Bengaluru-based Swiggy raised $80 million from South African media company Naspers in a Series E funding round. The food ordering and delivery platform’s total funding has gone up to almost $160 million with this latest investment.
This funding round also included existing investors Accel India, SAIF Partners India, Bessemer Venture Partners, Harmony Partners and Norwest Venture Partners. This Rs. 512 crores investment could provide the food delivery startup a potential edge over Zomato Media Private Ltd.
Swiggy spokesperson said in a statement that they plan to improve its technology team and provide new product offerings. Co-founder and CEO of Swiggy Sriharsha Majety added this investment will also be used to build strong data science and machine learning capabilities, and increase delivery efficiencies through personalization and deeper customer understanding.
The investment also gives the company a two-year head room to roll out a diversified product line and move away from a one-size-fits-all approach. Swiggy grew it’s revenue by over six times last year and could grow more this year with this investment.
Ashutosh Sharma, head of investments at Naspers in India said that they were attracted to Swiggy’s ability to create a sustainable business and it’s exceptional execution in online food ordering and delivery. Naspers is known for backing big Indian e-commerce firms such as Flipkart and Olx and has recently invested $431 million in Delivery Hero, the parent company of the German Foodpanda, food ordering, and delivery service.