Asia Press Agency

Tag: Meesho

  • WestBridge Capital Acquires Stake in Meesho at $3.5 Billion

    WestBridge Capital Acquires Stake in Meesho at $3.5 Billion

    WestBridge Capital, a prominent investment firm, has acquired a 1.5% stake in Meesho, a leading Indian e-commerce platform, at a valuation of $3.5 billion. This acquisition comes as part of a secondary share sale and represents a significant development in the Indian e-commerce landscape.

     

    WestBridge Capital acquired the stake from Meesho’s seed investor, Venture Highway. As a result of this transaction, Venture Highway will retain around 3.8% of Meesho. While the exact financial details of the deal were not disclosed, this strategic investment underscores the substantial growth potential of Meesho in the Indian e-commerce market.

     

    In a statement, Venture Highway highlighted its longstanding support for Meesho, stating that it was an early and long-term backer of the company, having invested in its first seed round over eight years ago. Venture Highway also noted that it generated over 50 times its initial investment from this transaction.

     

    Meesho, founded in 2015 by Vidit Aatrey and Sanjeev Barnwal, initially started as a social commerce platform but has since transformed into a broader e-commerce marketplace. The platform has experienced strong growth, with a diverse product mix, including home, kitchen, and baby care products. Notably, over half of Meesho’s traffic is now organic, which has significantly reduced customer acquisition costs.

     

    This strategic investment by WestBridge Capital underscores the positive outlook for Meesho and the broader Indian e-commerce market. Meesho’s ability to provide superior value to a large base of Indian consumers has enabled the company to make rapid strides in the fast-growing e-commerce sector. WestBridge Capital expressed its enthusiasm for partnering with Meesho and supporting the founders’ and management’s vision for future growth.

     

    This investment transaction is a testament to the continued interest and confidence of investors in India’s e-commerce sector. As the Indian e-commerce market continues to expand and evolve, it presents opportunities for both established and emerging players to thrive and deliver value to consumers.

     

    WestBridge Capital, a prominent investment firm managing over $7.5 billion of capital across various funds focused on India, recognizes the potential of Meesho’s business model and its significant growth prospects. Meesho’s strategic focus on third-party logistics and product diversification has contributed to its strong position in the Indian e-commerce landscape.

     

    Overall, this investment serves as a notable milestone in the journey of Meesho, highlighting its ability to attract investment from prominent players like WestBridge Capital and further solidifying its position as a key player in the Indian e-commerce industry.

  • Meesho Removes Over 42 Lakh Counterfeit Listings

    Meesho Removes Over 42 Lakh Counterfeit Listings

    Meesho, a SoftBank-backed e-commerce platform, has taken significant steps to combat counterfeit and restricted product listings on its platform. The company recently announced that it has successfully delisted nearly 42 lakh counterfeit and infringing product listings, along with 10 lakh restricted products, in the past six months. These delisted products account for approximately 5% of the total listed products on Meesho’s platform.

     

    According to the company, its “Project Suraksha” systems have played a pivotal role in this achievement. Since February 2023, there has been an impressive 80% reduction in platform views for non-compliant listings. Furthermore, Meesho has effectively blocked over 12,000 bad actor accounts from accessing the platform, reinforcing its commitment to creating a safe and trustworthy environment for users.

     

    Meesho’s Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Sanjeev Barnwal, revealed that the company utilized advanced techniques in computer vision and natural language understanding to fortify quality checks and identify counterfeit products and bad actors effectively. The company also maintains a dedicated quality and compliance team that proactively cross verifies automated signals to combat fraudulent practices, fostering user trust.

     

    The platform has also created a “Suraksha List” comprising approximately 1,800 high-risk brands known for infringement and counterfeiting, allowing Meesho to implement stringent monitoring and protection measures.

     

    Amid the ongoing challenges in the e-commerce sector, Meesho has been working towards a leaner organizational structure and sustainable profitability. In May, the company announced a workforce reduction of 15% in its third round of layoffs to align with its business goals.

     

    Despite the workforce reduction, Meesho’s financials have shown positive trends. A recent report by Jefferies revealed that the platform has achieved contribution-margin positivity (pre-marketing and indirect spends) and is nearing zero cash burn, positioning it on track to achieve EBITDA breakeven this year.

     

    As the Indian government frames a national e-commerce policy and consumer protection rules for the sector, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is scheduled to meet representatives from leading e-commerce firms, including Amazon, Flipkart, Tata CLiQ, Reliance, Zomato, Swiggy, and Meesho, along with domestic traders body CAIT. This meeting aims to discuss pertinent issues related to the e-commerce sector and address challenges faced by stakeholders.