Zero to IPO: The Zomato (Eternal Ltd) Story
On 23 July 2021, Zomato's shares opened at ₹116 on the NSE — a 53% jump over the ₹76 issue price — in one of the most watched market debuts in Indian history. Within hours, India's first listed food-tech company was worth over ₹1 lakh crore. But the story didn't begin on Dalal Street. It began thirteen years earlier, with two management consultants who were simply tired of struggling to order lunch.
This is the journey from FoodieBay to Zomato to Eternal — the startup that defined India's tech IPO wave.
The founding moment: two consultants, one lunch problem (2008)
In mid-2008, Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah were colleagues at Bain & Company in Delhi, both graduates of IIT Delhi. Like most office workers, they ate lunch at their desks — and like everyone else, they found ordering it a hassle, with no reliable way to discover what restaurants around them served or what anything cost.
So they did something consultants do: they made a spreadsheet. Then a website. Goyal and Chaddah began scanning restaurant menus and uploading them to a simple online directory, so their colleagues could browse and order. What started as an internal hack took on a life of its own — within months, colleagues across companies were using it.
On 10 July 2008, they launched it publicly as FoodieBay. Starting with around 1,200 restaurants in and around Delhi, they quickly expanded to Mumbai, Kolkata and Pune. The side project had become the main event: they quit Bain in November 2009 to work on it full-time, and incorporated the company on 18 January 2010 as DC Foodiebay Online Services Private Limited. Within a year, FoodieBay listed over 8,000 restaurants.
The cold email that changed everything (2010)
Sometime in 2010, Deepinder Goyal received an email from an unlikely admirer. Sanjeev Bikhchandani, the founder of Info Edge (the company behind Naukri.com) and one of India's most successful internet entrepreneurs, had been using FoodieBay for months to discover restaurants in Delhi.
Bikhchandani looked up the domain registration, found Goyal's email address through a Google search, and sent a short, direct message — essentially: "I use your site and we are fans. If you are looking to raise money, contact us."
Goyal replied within 24 hours. They met within 48 hours. They shook hands within 72 hours. On 22 July 2010, FoodieBay received ₹4.7 crore (about $1 million then) from Info Edge — a stake that would be worth billions at the IPO. Bikhchandani later credited the team rather than himself, writing that "money is a commodity, entrepreneurship is rare."
FoodieBay becomes Zomato (2010)
By late 2010, the founders felt the name FoodieBay was holding them back — it pigeonholed them as "just a food website" and risked confusion with eBay once they started accepting online payments. On 13 November 2010, Goyal announced the new name on the company blog: Zomato — a play on the word "tomato", with food at its centre but no limits on where it could go. The Zomato mobile app launched a month later.
Going global — then coming home to delivery (2011–2015)
With Info Edge's backing and later rounds from Sequoia Capital and others, Zomato went on a global expansion tear from 2014, launching restaurant discovery in markets like the UAE, the UK and the Philippines. At its peak, the company operated in more than 20 countries — though India always accounted for the bulk of its revenue.
The decisive turn came in 2015, when Zomato entered the food delivery business in India. Delivery quickly eclipsed discovery and became the company's core business — the right call at exactly the right time, as smartphone adoption and online payments exploded across urban India.
Gold, unicorns and a co-founder's exit (2016–2018)
The late 2010s were a rollercoaster. In 2017, Zomato launched Zomato Gold, a membership programme offering dining-out and delivery discounts that proved to be a cult hit. In February 2018, Ant Financial (Alibaba's affiliate) invested $200 million at a $1.1 billion valuation, making Zomato a unicorn.
Weeks later came a shock: in March 2018, co-founder Pankaj Chaddah announced he was stepping down from an active role after ten years, writing on Twitter that "after 10 yrs, I am moving on from @Zomato to try out something new" and thanking Goyal and Bikhchandani for their faith. He retained his shareholding (about 3.11%, worth roughly ₹237 crore at the time) and stayed on the board.
Swallowing Uber Eats, surviving the pandemic (2019–2020)
In early 2020, Zomato raised $150 million from Ant Financial at a $3 billion valuation — and then made the boldest move of its life. On 21 January 2020, it acquired the Indian operations of Uber Eats in an all-stock deal that gave Uber a 9.99% stake in Zomato. Uber Eats ceased to exist as a separate brand in India, and its customers were redirected to Zomato. Media reports at the time pegged the deal at around $350 million, though Uber's later regulatory filings valued the consideration at $206 million.
The consolidation put Zomato ahead of arch-rival Swiggy by order volume. Then the pandemic hit. With restaurants shut, Zomato pivoted to grocery delivery under Zomato Market and introduced contactless dining — keeping the company alive through a year that could have killed it.
The road to the IPO: DRHP to listing (April–July 2021)
Zomato filed its draft red herring prospectus with SEBI on 27 April 2021. The DRHP revealed a company that had found its stride: 10.7 million monthly ordering customers in FY20, 1.61 lakh active delivery partners and 1.31 lakh partner restaurants. Its cap table read like a who's who of global investing — Info Edge (18.55%), Uber (9.1%), Alipay and Ant Financial (about 8% each), Sequoia and Tiger Global, with Goyal himself holding around 5.5%.
The IPO opened on 14 July 2021 and closed on 16 July:
- Issue size: ₹9,375 crore (₹9,000 crore fresh issue + ₹375 crore offer for sale)
- Price band: ₹72–76 per share; lot size: 195 shares
- Registrar: Link Intime India
| Investor category | Subscription |
|---|---|
| Qualified Institutional Buyers (QIB) | 51.79x |
| Non-Institutional Investors (NII) | 32.96x |
| Retail Individual Investors (RII) | 7.45x |
| Total | 38.25x |
On 23 July 2021, Zomato listed on the NSE at ₹116 and on the BSE at ₹115 — up 51–53% from the ₹76 issue price. It closed the day at ₹125.85, a 65.8% gain, valuing the company north of ₹1 lakh crore (over $13 billion). It was India's first food-tech listing — and the IPO that kicked off India's startup listing wave, with Paytm, Nykaa and PolicyBazaar following within months. Read our first Zero to IPO edition: the DMart story.
Beyond the listing: Blinkit and the Eternal rename (2022–2025)
Listing was not the finish line — it was a funding round for the next act. In August 2022, Zomato acquired Blinkit (formerly Grofers) for ₹4,447 crore (about $570 million) in an all-stock deal. At the time, many investors scoffed at the price for a loss-making quick-commerce startup. Within three years, Blinkit would become the company's largest business.
In February 2025, the board approved renaming the company to Eternal Ltd — the name the team had used internally since the Blinkit acquisition to distinguish the company from the Zomato brand. Shareholders approved it on 9 March 2025 with 99.75% votes in favour, and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs made it official with effect from 20 March 2025. The corporate website moved from zomato.com to eternal.com, and the stock ticker changed from ZOMATO to ETERNAL — while the Zomato app kept its name.
Eternal now houses four businesses: Zomato (food delivery), Blinkit (quick commerce), District (going-out) and Hyperpure (B2B restaurant supplies). The company also became the first Indian tech startup to enter the BSE Sensex.
Where Zomato — now Eternal — stands today
The transformation shows up in the numbers. For FY25, Eternal reported revenue of ₹20,243 crore (up 67%) and net profit of ₹527 crore (up 50%). In FY26, revenue surged to ₹54,364 crore (up 169%), driven by Blinkit's scale-up, though annual profit dipped to ₹366 crore amid aggressive quick-commerce expansion.
The latest quarter, Q1 FY27, underlines how much the company has changed: revenue of ₹20,211 crore (up 182% year-on-year) and net profit of ₹92 crore (nearly 4x last year's ₹25 crore). Blinkit now contributes about 77.5% of operating revenue, with net order value of ₹17,132 crore (up 86%) and 2,443 dark stores — while food delivery, the original business, remains profitable and growing, with over 27 million monthly transacting customers.
For shareholders, the ride has been extraordinary: from the ₹76 issue price, Eternal's shares traded around ₹323 in October 2026 — a return of roughly 4.25x in five years — with a market capitalisation of about ₹3.16 lakh crore (around $33 billion). Compare with another startup IPO: our AceVector (Snapdeal) deep-dive.
Zomato journey: key milestones
| Year | Milestone |
|---|---|
| 2008 | Founded as FoodieBay by Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah (10 July) |
| 2009 | Founders quit Bain & Co; focus on the venture full-time |
| 2010 | ₹4.7 cr investment from Info Edge; renamed Zomato (November) |
| 2014 | International expansion begins; 20+ countries at peak |
| 2015 | Enters food delivery in India — soon becomes core business |
| 2017 | Zomato Gold membership launched |
| 2018 | Unicorn ($1.1B, Ant Financial); co-founder Chaddah steps down |
| 2020 | Acquires Uber Eats India (all-stock); survives COVID via groceries |
| 2021 | IPO: ₹9,375 cr at ₹72–76, 38.25x subscribed; listed 23 July at ₹116 |
| 2022 | Acquires Blinkit for ₹4,447 cr, all-stock |
| 2025 | Renamed Eternal Ltd; enters BSE Sensex |
| 2026 | Q1 FY27: ₹20,211 cr revenue, Blinkit 77.5% of it; mcap ~₹3.16 lakh cr |
Takeaways for investors and entrepreneurs
- Great consumer companies start with personal annoyance. Zomato began because two consultants found it hard to order lunch. The best startup ideas are often embarrassingly simple.
- Focus beats footprint. Zomato exited most international markets to double down on India — and won.
- Consolidation is a weapon. Swallowing Uber Eats removed a competitor and added scale in one stroke; the Blinkit acquisition, mocked at the time, built the company's future growth engine.
- The IPO is a milestone, not a destination. Zomato's most important value-creation — Blinkit, District, Eternal — happened after listing.
- Founders can evolve apart. Chaddah's 2018 exit didn't derail the company; Goyal's long tenure kept the vision intact.
FAQs: Zomato's journey to its IPO
When was Zomato founded?
Zomato was founded on 10 July 2008 as FoodieBay by Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah, both IIT Delhi graduates working at Bain & Company. It was renamed Zomato in November 2010.
Who founded Zomato?
Deepinder Goyal and Pankaj Chaddah co-founded Zomato. Goyal remains the founder and CEO of Eternal Ltd; Chaddah stepped down from an active role in March 2018.
When did Zomato's IPO happen, and at what price?
Zomato's IPO ran from 14–16 July 2021 at a price band of ₹72–76 per share. It listed on 23 July 2021 at ₹116 on the NSE (a 53% listing gain) and closed the day at ₹125.85, up 65.8%.
What is Eternal Ltd?
Eternal Ltd is the renamed corporate entity of Zomato Ltd (renamed March 2025). It houses four businesses — Zomato (food delivery), Blinkit (quick commerce), District (going-out) and Hyperpure (B2B supplies) — while the Zomato app and brand continue unchanged.
How much have Zomato's shares returned since the IPO?
From the ₹76 issue price, Eternal's shares traded around ₹323 in October 2026 — roughly a 4.25x return in about five years, with a market cap of around ₹3.16 lakh crore.
Is Zomato profitable?
Yes. Eternal reported a net profit of ₹527 crore in FY25 and ₹92 crore in Q1 FY27, with both the food delivery business and Blinkit generating positive operating earnings.
Conclusion
Zomato's arc — from scanned menus at Bain, to a cold email from Info Edge, to 20+ countries, to near-death in the pandemic, to India's landmark startup IPO, to the Eternal reinvention — is the defining company story of India's startup era. It proved that an Indian consumer internet company could list at home, stay profitable, and still reinvent itself.
For investors, the lesson is simple: the best IPO stories aren't about the listing day. They're about what the company does with the next decade.