B2B eCommerce platform Udaan has caught the attention of investors to the tune of $225 million, marking what reports on Tuesday (Sept. 4) said is now the fastest-growing unicorn startup in India.
According to The Economic Times, Udaan hit the $1 billion valuation mark after 26 months. The company, launched by former Flipkart executives, is reportedly set to raise $225 million from DST Global and Lightspeed Venture Partners' global fund, reports said, citing two unnamed sources. Both are existing investors of the company.
One source said Udaan had initially planned to wait to raise funds until next year, but interest from investors led existing backers to "double down again on the company." Another source said the company has seen a twelvefold increase in the gross value of transactions on its platform. Reports said the company has as many as 150,000 corporate buyers and suppliers using the firm to buy and sell goods, from electronics to office supplies and apparel.
The incoming investment would follow last February's $50 million investment, which was placed by Lightspeed and Apoletto Asia, according to reports. Two years prior, Udaan had raised $10 million from Lightspeed. Reports said a $225 million fund raise would increase its valuation fivefold.
While India is no stranger to unicorns, it is the speed with which Udaan has reportedly hit a $1 billion valuation that is surprising the industry. Previous unicorns include food delivery company Swiggy, advertising firm InMobi and mobile messaging app Hike; reports noted that those firms took at least four years to hit unicorn status.
While Paytm Mall had been in operation only 14 months when it reached a $1 billion valuation, reports noted that the company was a spin-off, bolstering the startup with brand recognition from the start.
Udaan confirmed the investment in a tweet on Tuesday.
The publication noted that the B2B eCommerce market is expected to be as much as seven times larger than the B2C eCommerce space, with analysts predicting a market valuation of $700 billion by the end of the decade.
