Knighted 💯

Donald's move, Ola's layoffs, and Zepto's raise.

Nov 25, 2024

☀️ Morning, last Monday of November.

🏦 Trump made his most consequential cabinet pick last week—Scott Bessent will be Treasury Secretary.

Bessent’s proposed gameplay is a simple 3-3-3—a three precent GDP growth, three million barrels of oil produced daily, and cut US-deficit down to three percent of GDP by 2028.

🚀 Markets are happy.

Let’s hit it!

1 Big Thing: Zomato ‘made it’ 🛵

Zomato will join the BSE Sensex, India’s flagship market index, replacing JSW Steel, as part of the index reconstitution that goes into effect December 23.

Context: the Sensex, widely regarded as a barometer of the Indian stock market, tracks the 30 largest and most actively traded companies on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

The index is reconstituted semi-annually, in June and December each year, to include the largest 30 companies by market cap.

Zomato’s stock has been on an absolute tear this year, up over 100% year-to-date, largely driven by the disruptive success of quick commerce.

Worth noting: the index reconstitution will also impact for the BSE 100 and the Sensex Next 50 indices. BSE 100 will add Jio Financial Services, Suzlon Energy, and Adani Power, taking out Ashok Leyland and IRCTC.

Bottomline: the move is a symbolic win for India’s nascent yet vigorous venture ecosystem, especially considering Zomato’s stock had a rough patch for a bit post-IPO.

Big picture: millions of passive investors just buy the indices and chill—and Zomato could see a positive impact from those allocators buying shares.

2. Ola’s cleansing act 🛵

Ola Electric is expected to lay off 500 employees as it tries to improve margins and accelerate progress towards profitability, as public-market scrutiny continues to mount.

This isn’t their first rodeo.

Exactly two years back, Ola had cut 1,000 jobs as it shifted focus to electric vehicles, dropping non-EV operations across the board, including used-cars, cloud kitchens, and grocery delivery, in anticipation of an IPO.

Zoom out: while ops may need polishing, Ola’s top-line is healthy. For the most recent quarter, the company had brought in ₹1,214 crore in revenues, up 39% YoY. But the stock has been dead-money since the late-August IPO.

3. Venture temp check, still hot💰

Zepto raised another massive $350 million at a hot $5 billion valuation—which would be the company’s third raise in just six months.

This round was apparently led by family-offices around India, including that of Motilal Oswal, Haldiram Snacks, and Mankind Pharma. The round also marks India’s largest fully domestic primary funding round.

Context: Zepto is in the process of flipping it’s domicile from Singapore to India, to be able to freely list on the stock markets here.

The hype: Zepto processes over 7.5 lakh orders daily across 17 cities, with annualized sales projected to hit $2 billion.

Big picture: quick-commerce in India is now worth $6 billion, and is expected to explode to $42 billion by 2030. Competition is fierce, but Zepto’s brand and singular focus is viewed positively.

4. Nadella’s run to 50 🥂

Last week, Microsoft celebrated it’s 50th birthday. Our boy Satya Nadella didn’t take over a company that was always this cool. It took some hard work. Below is a quick reminder.

Here’s a brilliant profile on Microsoft by The Wired to kick off your Monday

What else are we snackin’ 🍿

🤝 Portfolio expansion: Good Glamm Group, which owns a range of media and consumer-cosmetic plays, bought out ownership of The Moms Co., a natural, toxin-free personal care brand for mothers and babies.

🏓 Weird move: Swiggy is acquiring a Mumbai-affiliated pickleball team, set to participate in India’s first global pickleball league. The league starts in January 2025.

📉 Rough patch: Mamaearth’s market cap dipped below $1 billion, after sales slowdown and worsening profits spooked investors.

💰Western titans: Gokul Rajaram and Coatue’s Michael Gilroy are launching a $400 million venture fund, focusing on software and fintech.

That’s a wrap! Don’t let the Monday blues get to you.

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