Zomato acquires global food search app Urbanspoon

Deal, in the range of Rs 300-350 cr, is Zomato's 6th buy in last six months

Online restaurant search service Zomato has acquired Urbanspoon for an undisclosed amount in an all-cash deal, marking its entry into the US.

The deal is learnt to be in the range of $50-60 million (Rs 300-350 crore).

This is Zomato’s sixth acquisition in six months. It has bought local restaurant search entities in New Zealand, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Italy.

According to the company, the Urbanspoon buyout also establishes Zomato’s presence in Australia and Canada, while adding to its position in the UK and New Zealand. After the acquisition, Zomato will be present in 22 countries. Its coverage will increase to more than one million restaurants.



Traffic to Zomato’s sites would more than double from about 35 million visits per month to 80 million, a company statement said.

Deepinder Goyal, founder and chief executive officer of Zomato, said, “Our US entry has been on the cards for a while now, and we are delighted to be doing so by welcoming Urbanspoon into Zomato. Urbanspoon has a huge following and is home to legions of people who are as passionate about food as we are. We will soon be integrating the two products to bring the best to our users in the US as well as the rest of the world.”

The teams will be working closely over the coming months to integrate Urbanspoon into Zomato. All Urbanspoon traffic will eventually move to Zomato.com, and all Urbanspoon app users will be able to use the Zomato app.

Last month, Zomato had acquired Italian search service Cibando. According to the company, Zomato will invest $6 million in Italy over the next two years to build the team and the business in the country.

Zomato made four other acquisitions recently, including MenuMania in New Zealand, Lunchtime in the Czech Republic, Obedovat in Slovakia, and Gastronauci in Poland.

Backed by private equity investors including Sequoia Capital and India's Info Edge India Ltd, Zomato is also talking to existing as well as new investors to raise around $100 million in the next 30 days, Goyal told Reuters.

The company had raised $60 million in November led by Info Edge and Vy Capital, with participation from Sequoia Capital.

The startup is likely to be valued at about $1 billion after completing the fresh round of investment, Goyal said. Founded in 2008, Zomato is currently valued at around $660 million.