India’s quick commerce race is intensifying, and Zepto’s FY25 financials capture both the opportunity and the cost of winning in this high-speed market. The company more than doubled its sales during the year, but losses widened even faster as it aggressively scaled operations amid fierce competition.
According to Zepto’s audited financials accessed by Moneycontrol, the company reported total sales of ₹9,668.8 crore in FY25, a sharp 129% jump from ₹4,223.9 crore in FY24. However, the surge in scale came with a steep rise in losses, with net loss expanding 177% year-on-year to ₹3,367.3 crore, compared to ₹1,214.7 crore in the previous year.
The numbers underline a defining theme of India’s quick commerce sector: rapid expansion first, profitability later.
Credits: Moneycontrol
Understanding Zepto’s Revenue Versus GMV
While Zepto’s reported sales figure is close to ₹10,000 crore, the nature of quick commerce accounting means the headline number does not reflect operational revenue in the traditional sense.
Typically, quick commerce platforms recognise only 15–20% of gross merchandise value (GMV) as revenue, accounting mainly for commissions, logistics fees and advertising income. On this basis, Zepto’s estimated operational revenue for FY25 stands between ₹1,495 crore and ₹1,994 crore.
This distinction is crucial for investors assessing scale and sustainability, as it highlights how deeply companies are subsidising deliveries, customer discounts and merchant incentives to drive volumes.
How Zepto Stacks Up Against Blinkit and Instamart
A comparison with rivals shows Zepto remains behind market leaders in reported revenue, despite its rapid growth.
Blinkit, owned by Eternal, reported revenue of ₹5,206 crore in FY25, while Swiggy’s Instamart posted revenue of ₹2,252 crore during the same period. These figures indicate that although Zepto is scaling fast, Blinkit continues to lead the category in monetisation.
However, direct comparisons come with caveats, as disclosure practices vary widely across companies.
Are Losses Across Players Really Comparable?
Loss metrics in quick commerce are not apples-to-apples. Zepto reports net loss at the company level, while Swiggy and Eternal do not separately disclose net losses for Instamart or Blinkit. Instead, they report adjusted EBITDA, a metric that excludes depreciation, interest and certain one-off costs.
In FY25, Instamart recorded an adjusted EBITDA loss of ₹2,095 crore, while Blinkit’s adjusted EBITDA loss stood at ₹292 crore. Zepto’s losses, meanwhile, rose faster than its sales, with net loss reaching around 35% of turnover in FY25, up from roughly 29% in FY24.
This widening gap underscores the cost pressure associated with rapid expansion, especially for players still building density and scale.
Why Competition Intensified After FY25
The pressure on margins did not ease after FY25. In fact, competitive intensity increased sharply and extended well into the first and second quarters of FY26.
Leading players continued to add dark stores, ramp up delivery capacity and sustain high customer incentives, even as the market grew rapidly. The competition intensified further after Zepto raised $450 million, prompting rivals to accelerate expansion to protect market share.
Analysts tracking the sector have described the post-FY25 period as a new phase of hyper-competition, where aggressive growth strategies have kept profitability firmly on the back burner.
IPO Preparations and Key Board Appointments
Zepto’s FY25 performance comes at a pivotal moment as the company prepares to tap public markets. The company is set to confidentially file its draft IPO papers on December 26, 2025, marking a major milestone in its journey.
In parallel, Zepto has strengthened its leadership structure. Founders Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, along with CFO Ramesh Bafna, have been appointed as whole-time directors following shareholder approval at an extraordinary general meeting held on December 23.
Founder and CFO Compensation in FY25
Regulatory filings also shed light on leadership compensation. Palicha and Vohra each earned ₹1.5 crore in FY25. Under newly approved terms, both founders will receive fixed salaries of ₹2.5 crore annually, along with perquisites capped at ₹10 lakh per month and statutory benefits.
CFO Ramesh Bafna drew ₹6.85 crore in FY25, with his approved compensation structure including salary, bonuses and long-term incentives, even in years of inadequate profits.
As Zepto heads toward an IPO, its FY25 numbers reflect a familiar trade-off in India’s tech landscape: scale achieved at speed, with profitability still a work in progress.
