Meesho said on Monday that it had raised $ 300 million in a new round of funding led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, as the Indian social trading business becomes the ‘single ecosystem that will enable all small businesses to succeed online.’
The new round – a Series E – gives the five-year-old company a valuation of $ 2.1 billion, compared to about $ 600 million – $ 700 million in the 2019 Series D investment. According to the Indian company, which has raised about $ 490 million so far, Facebook, Prosus Ventures, Shunwei Capital, Venture Highway and Knollwood Investment also participated in the new round.
This deal appears to be Shunwei Capital’s first investment in an Indian company in almost a year. New Delhi last year introduced a rule that it must be approved before a Chinese investor can write a check to an Indian firm.
Meesho, based in Bangalore, operates an online market of the same name that connects sellers with customers on social media platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook and Instagram. The offer includes order management, logistics handling, online payments, real-time store updates and allowing businesses to sign in their customers.
The company claims to have a network of more than 13 million entrepreneurs, the majority of whom are women, more than 100,000 suppliers in nearly 5,000 Indian towns and cities that deal largely in groceries, clothing, household appliances and electronic items.
Meesho said he would deploy the new capital to help 100 million individuals and small businesses in the country sell online. “In the past year, we’ve seen tremendous growth in small businesses and entrepreneurs wanting to move their businesses online,” said Meitho co-founder and CEO Vidit Aatrey in a statement.
Amid Covid, who urged New Delhi to close for months, Meesho introduced Farmiso, a product that allows anyone to start an online grocery store online without any investment. Aatrey said Monday Farmiso is Meesho’s fastest growing business. (Before the pandemic, Meesho also began to expand in Southeast Asia, but has reduced efforts in recent months.)
‘We have been following Meesho closely for the past 18 months and are impressed by their growth, daily engagement statistics, their focus on unit economy and the ability to create a strong team. We believe that Meesho provides an effective platform for SME providers and social resellers to help abide by the e-commerce revolution in India and to offer their personal experience to consumers, “said Sumer Juneja, partner of SoftBank Investment Advisers, in said a statement.
In a recent report, UBS analysts identified social commerce and business markets as potential sources of competition for e-commerce companies such as Amazon and Flipkart in India.
Data: Meesho
Social commerce is a prominent bet to tackle modern e-commerce that has struggled to rise in India despite billions of dollars plowed by Amazon and Flipkart. Another bet is to digitize the neighborhood shops in the country – without so many social elements – which contain tens of thousands of towns, cities and villages in India. The world-wide Facebook and Google both support the horses.
“SoftBank has always been excited about founders worldwide who offer unique solutions for the local market. Using the power of artificial intelligence and machine learning, Meesho has created a platform for many small business owners to sell to the next group of Internet users. We look forward to being a part of this journey, ”said Munish Varma, managing partner of SoftBank Investment Advisers, in a statement.