Tata to buy 68% stake in BigBasket for Rs 9,500 crore: Report

Mumbai:  Tata Group will buy a 68% stake in online grocery startup BigBasket for about Rs 9,500 cr, television channel ET Now said on Tuesday, citing sources.

The salt-to-software conglomerate has been planning to launch a “super app” that will tie in all its consumer businesses, according to media reports, as it competes against Amazon.com Inc and Reliance Industries Ltd in India’s booming e-commerce market.

Bengaluru-based BigBasket competes with Walmart Inc-owned Flipkart and Amazon’s “Fresh” service as more consumers stay indoors and choose to shop online during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tata’s stake will translate into an enterprise value of 135 billion rupees for BigBasket, which is backed by Alibaba, ET Now said.

BigBasket top management, including co-founder Hari Menon, are likely to stay on for three to four years, according to the report.

Tata Group and BigBasket said they had no comments on the matter.