Naspers invests $600m in India’s Swiggy

The investment demonstrates the company’s commitment to India across multiple sectors, says the company

AFRICA’S largest company by market value, Naspers, has invested $600 million (R8.56 billion) in India’s biggest online food delivery company Swiggy.

The JSE heavyweight, boasting a market capitalisation of R1.23 trillion, said yesterday that Swiggy would use the funds to expand its already solid footprint across the Asian country, among other things.

The doyen of the bourse said its investment in Swiggy, as well as its recent investment in online learning app BYJU’s leading a $540m funding round, demonstrated the company’s commitment to India across multiple sectors.

“Swiggy’s unprecedented growth and focus on providing the best service possible for Indian consumers is demonstrated by the doubling of its gross merchandise value in the last six months, as it continues to unlock the tremendous potential in Indian food delivery,” said Naspers, a broad-based multinational internet company and media group.

It said Swiggy, which has presence in more than 40 cities across India, would use the funds to bring more quality food brands closer to consumers and to hire personnel for machine learning and engineering roles across mid and senior levels.

Naspers said the food delivery platform would also strengthen its technology backbone and focus on building the next-generation artificial intelligence-driven platform for hyperlocal discovery and on-demand delivery.

Swiggy chief executive Sriharsha Majety said: “Swiggy has been at the forefront of elevating the potential of Indian food delivery with its industry-changing innovations and focus on delivering the best consumer experience to millions of Indians.

“As we add more firepower to our vision of elevating quality of life for urban consumers by offering unparalleled convenience, we’re pleased that visionary global investors share our purpose and have made such a significant investment in our future.”

Larry Illg, the chief executive of food and ventures at Naspers, said the company first partnered with Swiggy in April 2017 because it recognised the Swiggy team had built a sustainable, long-term business that stood out among others in India.

“Now, nearly two years later, we have even more confidence that Swiggy has the winning formula and will continue to build a leading business in the country.”

Illg said Swiggy had 10 times the number of orders per month since Naspers’s first investment has expanded throughout India to tier 1, 2 and 3 cities.

He described Swiggy as the most loved food delivery brand in India, adding: “Our latest round of capital will help to accelerate Swiggy’s journey towards its vision of providing unmatched convenience in food ordering and delivery for Indian consumers.”

Naspers, which is set to have its secondary listing on A2X on December 27, is no stranger to the Asian market, and it has had its fair share of challenges in that continent.

Naspers is 31 percent owned by Chinese internet giant Tencent.

In August, Tencent announced that its net profit in the second quarter ended June was 2 percent lower than a year before.

This was Tencent’s first profit drop in more than a decade and resulted in Naspers erasing R121bn from its market value.