Deepinder Goyal's Zomato, Blinkit parent Eternal's board makes BIG move, clears plan to...

Zomato news: Deepinder Goyal, Eternal (formerly Zomato), continues to run one of the leading online food delivery platforms, Zomato, and quick commerce business Blinkit. The company has recently changed its name to Eternal. Now, Eternal has secured its board approval to cap foreign ownership in the firm at 49.5 per cent, TOI reported. The company said that the move will allow it to retain its status as an Indian-owned-and-controlled company (IOCC), enabling greater operational flexibility, particularly for the firm’s quick commerce business, Blinkit. Now, Eternal has approached its shareholders to seek approval for the same. As of March 31, domestic shareholding in the company stood at about 55 per cent. 

“To ensure we retain our IOCC status, we are seeking an enabling approval from shareholders for a cap of up to 49.5% on foreign ownership, subject to applicable laws….being an IOCC will help unlock new opportunities in quick commerce,” Eternal said in a filing to the exchanges. The company has a market cap of Rs 2.10 lakh crore. The share price of the firm closed at Rs 214.55 on Thursday (April 17). Eternal competes with Swiggy Instamart, Zepto and Tata’s BigBasket in the quick commerce space.

 Blinkit currently operates as a third-party marketplace relying entirely on third-party sellers that own the inventory of goods sold on the platform. As an IOCC, it can transition towards an inventory-led model, which will allow Blinkit to drive growth by introducing new, underserved categories which third-party sellers may not be currently investing in.  "Maintaining our IOCC status represents an important strategic lever that aligns with our long-term vision: to innovate faster, serve customers better, support local entrepreneurs and deliver stringer returns to shareholders,” the company said.

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