Zepto is set to pre-file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) under the confidential route on December 26 and is targeting a public listing next year, sources told Moneycontrol. If the plan materialises, the quick commerce unicorn could become one of the youngest startups to debut on Indian stock exchanges.
Founded in 2020, the Bengaluru-based company is expected to go public in 2026—around six years after its inception. Honasa Consumer, which runs Mamaearth, had listed about seven years after being founded, making Zepto’s proposed timeline among the fastest for an Indian unicorn.
“Zepto’s pre-filing work is complete, and the company is likely to inform stakeholders about the filing on December 26,” one of the sources said.
Once listed, Zepto will join other publicly traded quick commerce players such as Eternal, the parent of Blinkit, and Swiggy, which operates Instamart. As of December 25, Eternal has a market capitalisation of about $30 billion, while Swiggy’s market cap is around $12 billion.
Zepto is expected to raise about $500 million through its IPO, though the final valuation is yet to be determined. The company was last valued at roughly $7 billion during its private market fundraise this year, sources said.
The listing would mark a significant moment for India’s quick commerce industry, with the top three players—Blinkit, Swiggy and Zepto—all competing in the public markets. The sector, which emerged just five to six years ago, has rapidly evolved into a must-have consumer service, attracting intense competition.
Apart from the three market leaders, players such as Tata-owned BigBasket, Flipkart Minutes and Amazon Now are also expanding aggressively. Despite heavy cash burn—estimated at nearly Rs 9,000 crore over the past nine to eleven months by the top three players—the companies remain well-capitalised.
Eternal and Swiggy have each raised over $1 billion through qualified institutional placements (QIPs) after listing, strengthening their balance sheets. Together, Blinkit parent Eternal, Swiggy and Zepto are estimated to be sitting on more than Rs 40,000 crore in cash and cash equivalents, giving them a substantial war chest to scale up and compete for market share.
Source: Moneycontrol
