Close on the heels of its IPO, food delivery aggregator Zomato reported a consolidated loss to the tune of Rs 1.7 bn in Q1 FY22, an increase when compared to Rs 1.2 bn in Q4 FY21.
The company has cited an increase in expenses and ESOP expenses as reasons for this loss, despite an upswing in adjusted revenue by 26% quarter-over quarter (QoQ) to Rs11.6 bn. The company has submitted its financials in a regulatory filing for up to June 30, 2021.
Blaming the losses on the second COVID wave and ESOP grants, Zomato CEO, Deepender Goyal said, “Q1 FY22 was one of the most challenging quarters for our team as the second COVID wave ravaged the nation, we were left scrambling to work on multiple things at the same time. The loss for Q1 FY22 reported in our financial statements is Rs 3.6 bn as compared to the Adjusted EBITDA loss of Rs 1.7 bn. This is largely on account of non-cash ESOP expenses which have increased meaningfully in Q1 FY22 due to significant ESOP grants made in the quarter pursuant to creation of a new ESOP 2021 scheme.”
However, the company assured its shareholders and said, “We thank you for the incredible response to the Zomato IPO. We completed a billion orders last week which has taken them six years to achieve. We hope it takes us much less time to deliver the next billion.”
India food delivery GOV in Q1 FY22 grew by 37% QoQ to Rs 45.4 bn, from Rs 33.1 bn in Q4 FY21.
