Grofers joins the unicorn club with fresh funds from Zomato

Softbank-backed online grocery delivery service Grofers has become a unicorn after successfully raising $120 million from online food delivery firm Zomato, according to a source privy to the development.

The companies got the approval of the Competition Commission of India (CCI) on August 13 to go ahead with the investment.

Moneycontrol had reported on June 29 that Grofers was on its way to become a unicorn post the funding. While the deal closed last month, the CCI approval has come in now.

Grofers joins the 21 startups that have gained the much coveted tag this year following the funding frenzy in the domestic startup ecosystem.

Companies that became unicorns before Grofers include names like BharatPe,  CoinDCX, BrowserStack, Zeta, Moglix and Urban Company, among others.

By 2025, the Indian startup ecosystem is set to witness three-fold growth in valuation and a substantial rise in the number of Unicorns, which currently stands at 59, according to a report by early-stage venture capital fund 3one4 Capital.

Grofers and Zomato did not respond to queries.

Meanwhile, soon after raising the funds, Grofers has moved into the express delivery segment targeting quick commerce consumers.

As per a recent survey by Reedseer, quick commerce is expected to grow 10-15-fold in the next five years to become a $5 billion opportunity by 2025.

Also read: Express grocery delivery: How far will it go this time?