Zepto puts IPO plan on hold: What if it had listed?

Blinkit currently leads the quick commerce market, with a market share of 52 per cent, followed by Zepto at 27 per cent and Instamart at 21 per cent.

India's quick commerce sector will have to wait longer for its first pure-play listed company as Zepto deferred its planned initial public offering (IPO). The company instead plans to first raise ₹1,000 crore in a pre-IPO funding round at a valuation of about $4.5 billion, lower than the $7 billion valuation it commanded in late 2025.

 

The delay postpones what many expected would be a key valuation benchmark for India's fast-growing quick commerce industry. A Zepto listing was widely seen as a trigger for re-rating the segment and influencing the market's view of listed rivals Eternal (Blinkit) and Swiggy (Instamart). 

 

 

The stakes in the rapidly-growing quick commerce industry are high, as the gross merchandise value (the total monetary value of goods sold through the platforms) surging from $1.6 billion in FY23 to $11.3 billion in FY26. Anand Rathi projects the figure to hit $60 billion by FY31. 

 

 

GMV Market Share

 

Notably, Blinkit currently leads, with a market share of 52 per cent, followed by Zepto at 27 per cent and Instamart at 21 per cent, data compiled by Jefferies suggest. 

Market Share

 

As of FY26, Blinkit remains the largest player by revenue at ₹37,779 crore and has nearly twice the dark store network of its closest rivals with 2,243 stores. It is also the only player nearing profitability. DAM Capital Reserach suggested that Blinkit's adjusted Ebitda loss was just ₹277 crore, or ₹3 per order in FY26, a sharp contrast to Zepto's ₹5,042-crore adjusted Ebitda loss (₹79 per order) and Instamart's ₹3,507-crore loss (₹85 per order). 

Performance Comparison

 

Independent market analyst Ambareesh Baliga notes that Zepto has managed to scale up fast and has the highest orders per store. However, he said, "The important parameter for a listed stock is visibility of cash profits and then net profits. That seems some time away as Zepto’s FY26 net losses increased to ₹5,905 crore." 

Instamart seen trailing Blinkit, Zepto

 

Zepto's D-Street dream are on a pause but had they been on track, the question would have been: Who stands to lose more if the competition intensifies in the stock market? Between Blinkit and Instamart, the Swiggy arm has 1,044 orders per dark store per day, lower than Blinkit's 1,417 orders. The disparity stems from fewer dark stores operated by Instamart compared to Blinkit. 

 

Meanwhile, Zepto plans to use IPO proceeds to add nearly 1,900 dark stores and fund existing leases, raising competitive intensity especially in dense urban catchments where it already leads on orders per store. This, Santosh Meena, head of research at Swastika Investmart, said, will pressure Instamart’s already-shrinking share further and force Blinkit to defend its roughly 50 per cent market leadership through continued network expansion and assortment depth.

 

"Newer entrants such as Flipkart Minutes and Amazon Now will also face a better-capitalised pure-play rival, keeping price and service competition elevated for longer," he said.

 

However, Baliga noted that the market looks for profitability with scale, and this "cannot be achieved without continuous upgrade of technology to achieve efficiencies".

 

"Swiggy is the weaker player,  so naturally Swiggy will be more affected. Eternal is far larger, and the vertical has been Ebitda profitable for two quarters, so have a better ability to withstand competition," he added.  ==========================================  Disclaimer: View and outlook shared belong to the respective brokerages/analysts and are not endorsed by Business Standard. Readers discretion is advised.