Indian Delivery Platform Dunzo Raises $40 Million In Round Led By Google, Lightbox

India-based delivery startup Dunzo is closing a $40 million Series E funding round led by Google, Lightbox, Evolvence, Hana Financial Investment, LGT Lightstone Aspada, Alteria, and others, Dunzo said in a statement on Tuesday (Jan. 19), per YourStory.

Launched in 2015, Dunzo is striving to advance the retail landscape in India by providing micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) with digital tools and solutions to streamline and facilitate eCommerce sales. The company offers users in the country a full suite of digital delivery services.

Kabeer Biswas, CEO and co-founder of Dunzo, said the company has been “amazed” by how much people have come to rely on its platform amid the global pandemic. “We truly believe we are writing a playbook for how hyperlocal businesses can be built with sustainable unit economics and capital responsibility,” he said.

“As a team, we are more focused than ever to enable local merchants to get closer to their users and build one of the most loved consumer brands in the country,” he added.

The funds will be used to help Dunzo scale business in its busiest locales, including Mumbai, Chennai and Pune. In the last six months, Dunzo said its services extended to more than 300 neighborhoods across eight cities in India, delivering merchandise in about 29 minutes.

“As merchants go digital, Dunzo is helping small businesses in their digital transformation journey in support of business recovery,” Caesar Sengupta, VP, Google, said in a press statement, per YourStory.

Dunzo has an annualized GMV of $100 million, with GMV growth two times over the past year. The startup said its 2020 growth followed strong, organic user demand.

Google teamed up with Dunzo in May 2020 to help the search giant make inroads into India and give Dunzo users the ability to use Google Pay. Google Pay has more than 67 million users in India. In India, Google faces rivals like Amazon and Zomato.