Q-comm firms add fees to cart; Curefoods joins IPO queue
Happy Monday! Quick commerce players are introducing new charges to offset rising losses. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch.
Also in the letter:
■ Mid-market GCC jobs outlook ■ Fresh yolk for Eggoz■ IndiaAI's LLM focus
Quick commerce apps stack up extra fees to curb losses
India's quick commerce players — Blinkit, Instamart, and Zepto among them — are quietly layering on new charges, such as handling, small-cart, rain, and surge fees, to shore up their fragile unit economics, executives and analysts tracking the sector told us.
Driving the news: These add-on fees, charged over and above standard delivery rates, typically range from Rs 6 to Rs 30 per order, depending on city and demand.
Crucially, they allow platforms to increase their take rates without adjusting base delivery fees, which remain subsidised to keep users engaged.
Apps have also raised the minimum cart value, nudging users towards bigger baskets.
However, this fee stacking has triggered a wave of user complaints about hidden charges. The government, too, has taken note — it recently flagged these as 'dark patterns' and asked these platforms to conduct self-audits.
Also Read: Quick commerce industry's hygiene headache explained
Why it matters: The top platforms control more than 80% of the market and are battling swelling losses. Blinkit posted a Rs 178 crore loss in Q4 FY25, while Instamart's losses touched Rs 840 crore in the same period.
With aggressive discounting and high delivery subsidies weighing on margins, these charges aim to plug widening gaps in the business model.
Zoom out: India's quick commerce market is projected to touch $31 billion by FY28.
For now, though, growth is coming at the cost of profitability, even as regulators and customers push back against the tactics being used to fund it.
Also Read: Quick commerce firms face delivery partner crunch amid rising demand
Curefoods files for public listing amid IPO market resurgence
Ankit Nagori, founder, Curefoods
Cloud kitchen operator Curefoods filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) for an initial public offering (IPO), joining a wave of Indian tech firms tapping into renewed interest in the IPO market.
Key details: The offer will include a fresh issue worth Rs 800 crore, alongside an offer for sale (OFS) of 48.5 million shares.
Early backers Accel, Chiratae Ventures and Iron Pillar PCC would offload part of their stake in the OFS.
JM Financial, IIFL Capital and Nuvama are advising on the IPO.
Use of proceeds: Curefoods will use Rs 152 crore from the IPO to expand cloud kitchens, restaurants and kiosks, mainly for Krispy Kreme.
Another Rs 127 crore will go towards debt repayment, with some funds allocated to boost stakes in subsidiaries.
India-Ratings downgrades IPO-bound Infra.Market on debt repayment worries
Aaditya Sharda and Souvik Sengupta, cofounders, Infra.Market
India Ratings, part of the Fitch Group, has downgraded Infra.Market's long-term debt rating to 'BBB+ with Negative Outlook' from 'A- with Negative Outlook', citing worries around debt refinancing, weak liquidity and negative cash flows from operations in FY25.
On the flipside: In response, Infra.Market told investors and lenders in a note last month that the downgrade fails to reflect its improving financials, recent equity infusion, and upcoming liquidity events, including its planned IPO.
Meesho gets shareholder nod to go public
Vidit Aatrey, CEO, Meesho
Ecommerce platform Meesho has secured shareholders' approval to go public, the last step before filing its DRHP with Sebi.
What's on offer: The company recently redomiciled to India in preparation for the listing. The IPO will feature a fresh issue of Rs 4,250 crore, along with an offer for sale.
Zoom out: Meesho could become the first digital-only one-stop shop to list in India. Its larger rival, Flipkart, owned by Walmart, is also exploring a public listing.
Also Read: IPO watch: Which Indian startups are next to hit the stock market?
Mid-market GCCs likely to add 40,000 jobs by 2026 end
Mid-market global capability centres (GCCs) are poised to add 40,000 jobs in India by the end of 2026, pushing their total workforce past 260,000, according to data from ANSR Global, which helps set up these captive units.
Tell me more: Over 120 new mid-sized GCCs are expected to come up by the end of next year.
Most of them will support functions across software, banking, finance, accounting, insurance, and retail.
Hiring will remain concentrated in key tech hubs, including Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Pune, and Gurugram.
The hottest skills on the radar include AI/ML engineering, data analytics, cloud engineering, cybersecurity, full-stack development, product management, and solution architecture.
Bird's eye view: Mid-market GCCs are punching above their weight when it comes to deep tech. They account for around 1.5 times more talent in areas such as AI/ML, cybersecurity, cloud, and data science, according to a Nasscom-Zinnov report. While leaner by design, these centres are doubling down on niche and high-value skills rather than chasing scale.
Other Top Stories By Our Reporters
Eggoz eyes to bolster presence with fresh funds: Agritech startup Eggoz secured $20 million in new funding, with mid-market private equity firm Gaja Capital leading the round, to expand its presence in existing markets.
IndiaAI Mission emphasises building LLMs: Out of the 506 proposals received by the IndiaAI Mission for developing foundational AI models, 43 are specifically dedicated to creating large language models (LLMs).
Global Picks We Are Reading
■ Inside the British lab growing a biological computer (FT)
■ Why tech billionaires want bots to be your BFF (WSJ)
■ Facebook is starting to feed its AI with private, unpublished photos (The Verge)
Updated On Jun 30, 2025, 07:50 AM IST
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