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SoftBank leads $200m round for India's Grofers

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Indian online grocer Grofers has raised more than $200 million in a Series F funding round led by SoftBank Vision Fund.

Existing investors Tiger Global Management and Sequoia Capital India also participated in the round, along with South Korea’s KTB Ventures, making its first investment in the company. The transaction represents the biggest investment to date for Grofers. It follows a $150 million funding round for its biggest rival BigBasket from investors including Alibaba Group, Mirae Asset Management, and CDC Group.

The last few years have been a time of transition for Grofers. The company pivoted away from the hyperlocal delivery model that it started with in 2013 due to high operating costs. Today, Grofers follows an inventory-based model, delivering groceries and other daily goods from its own warehouses. It aims to be profitable by the end of 2021 and pursue an IPO in the next three years.

Grofers has raised significant amounts of capital including a $120 million Series C round in 2015 led by SoftBank, with participation by Sequoia, Tiger, and Apoletto Asia – a vehicle backed by DST Global founder Yuri Milner – that reportedly valued the company at $400 million. SoftBank, Tiger, and Milner also participated in a subsequent $62 million round last year to support the shift in business model.

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