17 May 2024
Around 20 people, family and friends, bought shares worth ₹25 crore from Porter’s Employee Stock Option Plan (ESOP) at a valuation of $1 billion.
Porter became the third unicorn this year after Ola’s AI company, Krutrim, and fintech startup Perfios. Backed by PeakXV, Porter’s primary valuation was $514 million in 2021 after raising $101 million in a Series E round from investors, including Tiger Global, Lightrock India, and Vitruvian Partners.
Porter offers on-demand last-mile delivery through light commercial vehicles. This secondary funding round was supposed to be at a discount of 25-30% from the primary valuation, as per the norm. However, its leadership pinned its valuation at $1 billion.
Launched in 2014, Porter focuses on the two-wheeler intra-city courier service for revenue generation. Its revenue doubled in FY2023 from ₹848 crore to approximately ₹1,754 crore despite 43% higher losses worth ₹175 crore.
Indian startups are facing slowed secondary funding. Up to one-fifth of the big venture capital deals from 2023 to April 2024 saw a steep reduction in valuations, the highest since 2015.