Indian social e-commerce platform DealShare successfully raised US$144 million!

Some time ago, Een.com reported that DealShare, an Indian social commerce trading platform, was in talks to raise $70 million to $100 million in Series D financing .

DealShare revealed today that it has finally raised $144 million in a new round of financing , hoping to expand its influence in the South Asian market and seek opportunities in the international market.

The new round of Series D financing was indeed led by Tiger Global, which valued DealShare at US$455 million (post-investment).

WestBridge Capital, Alpha Wave Incubation (a venture fund backed by ADQ and managed by Falcon Edge Capital), Z3Partners, Partners at DST Global, and Alteria Capital also participated in the new round.

Although Amazon and Flipkart, as Indian e-commerce giants, already have a huge market share in Indian cities, their market scope is still limited, and most parts of India are still lacking in e-commerce services .

DealShare started out as an e-commerce platform on WhatsApp, offering hundreds of products to consumers, mainly in small towns in India. DealShare executives said the company offers "high-quality, low-priced essentials, coupled with a gamified, fun and viral-driven local shopping experience, making it easy for first-time internet users to experience online shopping."

Because of this, customers on its platform flock to buy select items, making purchases "extremely competitive" in terms of affordability , with even a single user's shopping cart typically costing between $16 and $19.

DealShare's competitor is Meesho, another social e-commerce platform invested by SoftBank and Prosus ventures. Meesho is one of the pioneers in India, and its GMV (as of March 21) has reached US$1.4 billion.

Jefferies analysts said in a recent report that social commerce, which combines commerce with social media, is still in its infancy in India, but has the potential to become mainstream in this unique new e-commerce market. And with the entry of Reliance Industries and Tata Group causing multiple shocks in the Indian e-commerce market, India's social commerce will also surge further.

India

Social e-commerce

Financing