India’s quick commerce startup Dunzo raised $240 million in a funding round led by Reliance Retail Ventures Limited, with participation from existing investors Lightbox, Lightrock, 3L Capital and Alteria Capital, according to multiple media reports. The company also counts Google as an earlier investor.
Reliance invested $200 million for a 25.8% stake in the company on a fully diluted basis and will use Dunzo to provide deliveries from the group’s retail stores, as well as the neighborhood grocers that market themselves on Jio Mart.
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“We are seeing a shift in consumption patterns to online and have been highly impressed with how Dunzo has disrupted the space,” said Isha Ambani, a director at Reliance Retail Ventures, Nikkei Asia reported Thursday (Jan. 6).
The fresh infusion of capital will be used to advance Dunzo’s goal of being the biggest quick commerce company in India while also growing its business-to-business (B2B) unit to help facilitate logistics for local merchants.
Read more: Indian Delivery Platform Dunzo Raises $40 Million In Round Led By Google, Lightbox
“With this investment from Reliance Retail, we will have a long-term partner with whom we can accelerate growth and redefine how Indians shop for their daily and weekly essentials,” said Kabeer Biswas, Dunzo co-founder and CEO.
Launched in 2014, Dunzo started as a delivery network taking requests via WhatsApp and then began delivering from stores. The company started its quick commerce operation last year, when it launched a grocery delivery service that delivers goods in under 20 minutes.
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Reliance’s investment in Dunzo comes as the competition heats up in the quick-commerce arena, with some startups promising delivery in as little as 10 minutes.
Grocery delivery startup Grofers moved to quick delivery last year and rebranded as Blinkit, while newcomer Zepto notched $160 million in two rounds since October from Y Combinator’s Continuity Fund. Other well-funded newcomers include Gopuff, Getir, Gorillas and Jokr.