Indian quick-commerce startup Zepto has unveiled plans for an initial public offering that could be valued at about $1 billion, putting one of Y Combinator’s biggest bets outside the U.S. on the path to public markets.
The filing, released Monday, offers a rare look at how one of India’s most closely watched startups plans to sustain its breakneck growth after listing. Zepto’s advertising revenue rose more than 151% year-over-year to ₹16.4 billion (about $171 million) in fiscal 2026, outpacing the company’s 104% increase in operating revenue to ₹115.5 billion (around $2.4 billion).
While grocery deliveries remain Zepto’s core business, the faster growth of its advertising arm points to a broader shift in how the startup makes money — a strategy Amazon pioneered, turning its marketplace into one of the world’s most profitable ad businesses by selling visibility to the same merchants competing on its platform.
Founded in 2021 by Stanford dropouts Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, Zepto has grown into one of India’s fastest-growing startups, competing with Zomato-owned Blinkit and Swiggy’s Instamart in the country’s fiercely contested quick-commerce market. Amazon and Walmart-backed Flipkart have also intensified their efforts in the segment in recent months.
