India’s Meesho receives $192m from parent firm

Meesho, an Indian ecommerce platform backed by Meta, has received US$192 million from its US-based parent firm, Meesho Inc., Entrackr reported.

However, in a statement to Tech in Asia, the company said that it does not consider this a fundraising activity. The Entrackr report also noted that this was due to a business-as-usual practice as part of the company’s larger treasury strategy.

Meesho’s board has passed a special resolution to issue over 6.5 million equity shares to Meesho Inc. at an issue price of 2,408 rupees (US$29.4) per share to raise US$192 million.

The company’s latest fundraise was a US$570 million series F round in September 2021 – led by US asset manager Fidelity as well as Eduardo Saverin’s B Capital – with a post-money valuation of US$4.9 billion.

Since being founded in 2015, Meesho has raised over US$1 billion, according to Tech in Asia data. With its start as a social commerce platform, Meesho has become a full-fledged ecommerce marketplace and now directly competes with Amazon and Flipkart.

However, the company has cut down costs by about 50% since it has not been able to raise a new round in the current investment climate. It also reportedly suspended grocery delivery services in several Indian cities and laid off hundreds of employees this year to cut costs.

See also: Indian unicorns exit Indonesia, raising questions over expansion strategy

Currency converted from Indian rupee to US dollar: US$1 = 81.8 rupee.