Groupon India breaks away from parent company, rebrands as Nearbuy

Sequoia India is helping Groupon India to break away from its Chicago-based parent company. In this deal, Groupon Inc has relinquished its majority stake to the VC firm and the top management of its Indian arm – which has now been rebranded to Nearbuy. It will also launch a new website, mobile app, and corporate logo.

This deal comes after Sequoia India pumped US$20 million into Groupon India earlier this year. “The local commerce market in India is growing at a fast pace, and mobile penetration is facilitating that. Plugging Groupon’s global support to this growth would help us become a true local player with global expertise and technology”, says Ankur Warikoo, CEO and founder of Nearbuy, in a statement.

The company will operate as an independent entity and will expand its presence to over 35 different cities. Groupon will continue to be a major shareholder in the company. The C-suite executives of Nearbuy includes: Ankur Warikoo as CEO, Sumeet Kapur as CFO, Snehesh Mitra as CTO, and Sachin Kapur as CMO.

Groupon India came into existence after its parent company acquired SoSasta in 2011 to fire up its India operations. Warickoo took on the reigns of the company after the founders of SoSasta exited. Groupon India offers users deals in the F&B, wellness, and travel categories. The company claims to have captured 50 percent market share in the Indian couponing industry and sold over seven million vouchers last year, with a redemption rate of 97 percent among its customers.

The other dominant players in the Indian deal aggregation space are Rocket Internet’s CupoNation, Times Internet Limited’s CouponDunia, and Info Edge-backed MyDala.

(Editor’s note: Sequoia Capitals has been changed to Sequoia India in this article.)