SoftBank in talks to invest $500m in Swiggy

SoftBank Vision Fund 2 is in advanced stages of talks to invest up to $500bn dollars into food delivery startup Swiggy, two sources familiar with the matter told TechCrunch.

The new investment, which would value the Indian startup at about $5.5bn according to thos sources, would add to the $800m fundraise Swiggy unveiled earlier in April.

According to the sources, SoftBank had been looking into the food startup market in India and had considered rival Zomato. But the investment firm had picked Swiggy earlier in the same week, a person familiar with the matter said.

Following the $800m cash call, Swiggy co-founder and chief executive Sriharsha Majety told employees in a memo that the new fundraise “gives us a lot more firepower than the planned investments for our current business lines.”

He added that the long-term goal for the startup is to serve 500m users in the next 10-15 years.