CDC supports funding round for Indian e-commerce platform

The UK development finance institution said in a statement that the capital will help Jabong grow its business and develop its supply chain infrastructure and technology platform. CDC expects this will create jobs with the company directly and also throughout its supply chain and distribution network.

According to The Economic Times, the funding round is worth $100 million in total. Jabong was incubated by Rocket Internet, with Rocket and other investors said to own 85-90% of the company. The founders hold around 10%.

Founded in 2012 by former executives of McKinsey & Company and Bain Capital, Jabong sells apparel, shoes, accessories and home furnishings. The company started out sourcing goods from suppliers and holding them as inventory but - like many of its peers - it has since introduced a managed marketplace model as well, facilitating transactions between suppliers and buyers but not holding inventory.

The Jabong platform connects more than 4,000 local manufacturers with Indian consumers, more than half of whom are located outside major metropolitan areas. As of March 2013, the company claimed to be shipping 6,000-7,000 orders per day.

Jabong's major rival is Myntra, which is reportedly seeking an additional $40 million from investors on top of $50 million round that closed this week. The company is also in competition with broader based online retailers Flipkart, which received $360 million from investors last year, and Snapdeal, which raised a Series C round worth $50 million.

• Tweet  
• Facebook  
• LinkedIn  
• Google plus  
• Save this article  
• Send to  

• Topics
• Technology
• Consumer
• Venture
• South Asia
• TMT
• India
• CDC Group
• Venture
• Rocket Internet