Zomato began operating its ticketing business more than a year ago and plans to grow its non-core business.
Zomato, the Indian food delivery giant, has acquired the entertainment ticketing business of financial services firm Paytm for $244.1 million, signaling a strategic move to expand its “going out” offerings.
The acquisition, among the largest M&A deals among new-age Indian tech companies, includes Paytm’s ticketing services for movies, sports and events. As part of the deal, Paytm’s flagship app will continue to host these offerings for up to 12 months and 280 of its employees will join Zomato, the companies said.
Like food delivery, the new business operates in a duopoly, with Reliance-backed BookMyShow controlling three-fourths of online movie ticketing and over half of online event ticketing, and the rest is with Paytm, according to Jefferies.
The acquisition also aligns with Zomato’s broader strategy to diversify its services, Bank of America analysts said. The move could significantly bolster Zomato’s ambitions to become a one-stop destination for dining and entertainment options, they wrote in a note.
The Paytm’s ticketing division, which was built through the acquisitions of Insider.in and TicketNew, contributed about 9% to Paytm’s overall revenues in the recent quarter and 4% to FY24 net revenues. Paytm acquired Insider.in and TicketNew for a sum of about $32 million.
The acquisition coincides with a remarkable performance in Zomato’s stock market value with shares soaring over 100% this year as the food delivery giant’s quick commerce business makes deeper inroads in India.
Brokerage firm UBS said this week that it now values Blinkit, Zomato’s quick commerce service, at $15.4 billion, ahead of the Noida headquartered firm’s core food delivery business.
Meanwhile, Paytm has been refocusing its efforts on its core fintech operations amid increased regulatory scrutiny.
Source: TechCrunch
