Swiggy recently announced the sale of its entire 12% stake in Rapido, India’s leading bike taxi startup, for approximately ₹2,399.5 crore. The deal involves transferring 10 equity shares and 1,99,948 Series D compulsorily convertible preference shares in Roppen Transportation Services, Rapido’s parent company. The stake was split between MIH Investments One B.V. (a Prosus Group company from the Netherlands), which acquired shares worth ₹1,968 crore, and Setu AIF Trust along with WestBridge affiliate, taking shares worth ₹431.5 crore.
This divestment yielded over 2.3X return on Swiggy’s initial investment of about $120 million made less than four years ago, reflecting strategic portfolio optimization and preparedness to avoid conflicts since Rapido recently ventured into food delivery.
Why Stake Sell in Rapido
Foodtech giant’s decision to exit its 12% stake in ride hailing giant was primarily strategic, aimed at avoiding conflicts of interest following Rapido’s recent expansion into the food delivery sector—a space where Swiggy is a dominant player. By selling its stake, Foodtech aims to realize investment value for shareholders while aligning its focus on its core food delivery and quick commerce businesses.
Separately, Ride hailing startup has launched ‘Ownly,’ a standalone food delivery app currently active in Bengaluru. Offering dishes priced mostly under ₹150, Ownly blends ‘offline prices’ with transparent pricing policies, and includes popular brands like Wow!, Eatfit, Krispy Kreme, and Faasos. This move places Rapido in direct competition with established food delivery giants such as Swiggy and Zomato, intensifying the market landscape
Read this: Swiggy Launches ‘toing’, a Budget Food Delivery App Offering Meals At Just Rs 100
Ownership and Business Model
Founded by Pavan Guntupalli, Aravind Sanka, and Rishikesh SR, Rapido has grown from a small bike taxi operator to a multi-modal urban mobility giant operating in over 100 cities across India. It facilitates approximately 2.3 to 2.5 million rides daily with a robust rider base exceeding 1.5 million captains. WestBridge Capital stands as the largest shareholder, holding around 26%, while Swiggy held 15% before the divestment. This ownership base underpins a dynamic model combining gig-economy ridesharing revenue, regional logistics, and subscription commerce. Rapido’s revenue surged 46% to ₹648 crore in FY24, though it continues to invest aggressively, with a net loss of ₹371 crore.
Swiggy’s Quick Commerce Spin-Off and Expansion
Alongside this sale, Swiggy’s board approved a slump sale to hive off its quick commerce arm, Instamart, into a wholly owned subsidiary, Swiggy Instamart Private Limited. This move offers a focused structure for Instamart’s growth, whose revenues hit ₹2,129.6 crore in FY25, forming nearly 24% of Swiggy’s standalone revenue. Despite heavy investment and cash burn in quick commerce, separating Instamart is a strategic lever to unlock clearer financial reporting and easier capital raising or potential future spin-offs.
They continues to invest heavily in expanding its quick commerce footprint, scaling its Megapods network, increasing store count to 1,000+ across 124 cities, and innovating through programs like Maxxsaver.
Recent Financial and Operational Highlights
Zomato’s Biggest rival posted ₹7,800 crore revenue in FY25, a strong 22% increase YoY, fuelled by gains in food delivery and quick commerce segments. While net losses doubled in Q4 FY25 to ₹1,081 crore due to EbITDA investments and growth initiatives, the company showed operational progress with Food Delivery showing improved gross order values and over 5x YoY adjusted EBITDA growth to ₹212 crore. They are balancing rapid expansion with strategic portfolio reshuffling to drive sustainable scalability and investor confidence.
