With latest venture debt investment, BigBasket aims to set up new warehouses & facilities

BigBasket, an online grocery company, has received Rs 100 crore in venture debt from Trifecta Capital.

The company will use the funds to meet its working capital and Capex requirements including building new warehouses and facilities for reprocessing of fruits and vegetables. The fresh capital will also strengthen its cold chain and scale-up its supply chain for the recently launched milk subscription business.

Hari Menon, Co-Founder of SuperMarket Grocery Supples, which runs Bigbasket, said, “We have a clearly identified use case for debt. We are present in 26 cities and continue to optimise our supply chain. A significant part of our business is fresh fruits and vegetables, the bulk of which is sourced directly from farms. It is crucial that we maintain the quality right up to the last mile. Funding such Capex requirements is best done through debt.”

Vipul Parekh, CFO, SuperMarket Grocery Supplies Pvt Ltd, stated, “We had taken venture debt from Trifecta Capital in 2017 and realised that it was a more optimal form of financing for working capital and capex. Venture debt not only reduces dilution for all shareholders, but it also reduces the cost of capital, improves RoE and expands the runway.”

“We recently raised $150 million from marquee investors and decided to supplement the equity capital with additional Venture Debt,” he added.