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Food and grocery delivery company Swiggy said on Thursday that its board will meet on November 7 to consider a Rs 10,000 crore ($1.1 billion) fundraise through a qualified institutional placement (QIP), according to a filing with the exchanges.ET reported in its Thursday edition that the Bengaluru-based company was exploring a QIP of around $1–1.5 billion to strengthen its balance sheet.In a letter to shareholders, Swiggy said that while it remains “well-funded” for its growth plans, “the external competitive environment is dynamic, and legacy and new players continue to attract investments to the sector.”“This has necessitated a conversation with the board to consider an additional fundraise which will give us access to sufficient growth capital while enhancing our strategic flexibility,” the company added.As of September 30, Swiggy had Rs 4,605 crore in cash — after burning Rs 749 crore during the July-September period. The cash burn fell from Rs 1,341 crore in the April-June quarter.The company pulled back on capital expenditure — adding only 40 dark stores during the quarter. On a sequential basis, the company’s consolidated adjusted Ebitda losses narrowed to Rs 695 crore in July-September from Rs 813 crore in April-June.“With the current cash balance (to be bolstered by the Rs 2,400 crore Rapido divestment), we feel comfortable about our overall balance sheet strength,” Swiggy said. The company is selling its nearly 12% stake in urban mobility startup Rapido to Dutch technology investor Prosus and WestBridge Capital.Swiggy reported a 74% year-on-year expansion in overall net losses to Rs 1,092 crore. Its operating revenue increased 54% to Rs 5,561 crore on the back of rapid growth in quick commerce.Gurugram-based Eternal — the parent company of India’s largest quick commerce firm Blinkit and food delivery firm Zomato — is sitting on more than Rs 18,000 crore in cash as of September 30. Meanwhile, the latest fundraise by Zepto had boosted the company's reserves to $900 million after the closure of the $450-million round, which included the secondary sale of shares by existing investors.
