Tata Digital, a subsidiary of conglomerate Tata Group, has acquired a majority stake in BigBasket, an India-based grocery platform backed by e-commerce firm Alibaba, the Economic Times reported on Friday.
The corporate has reportedly made the first payment of $200m for the deal, which values BigBasket at $2bn post-money. It was approved in April this year after being agreed two months before, and Tata Digital is set to pay $1.2bn for a 64.3% stake in the company at a $1.87bn valuation.
Alibaba and investment firm Actis are among the investors that are completely exiting BigBasket through the transaction.
Founded in 2011, BigBasket runs a digital food and household supplies marketplace which offers an on-demand delivery service in several parts of its home country including Bangalore, Delhi, Hyderabad and Mumbai.
The company had secured $745m in funding prior to the acquisition. Alibaba supplied $50m through a bridge loan in April 2020 having reportedly committed to a $60m round shortly beforehand alongside CDC Group and Mirae Asset Ventures.
The April round came after Alibaba provided $50m in funding for BigBasket in mid-2019 together with $60m from Mirae Asset Global Investments and $40m from CDC.
Alibaba had put up $146m to lead a $300m round for BigBasket the previous year at a $950m valuation, investing witth Abraaj Group, Sands Capital Management and returning backers Bessemer Venture Partners, Helion Ventures, International Finance Corporation and Trifecta Capital. Ascent Capital and Zodius Capital are also among its former shareholders.
