Foodtech major Swiggy starts charging Rs 2 platform fee on food orders across 3 cities

Bengaluru-based foodtech giant Swiggy has started charging Rs 2 platform fee on food orders being delivered in cities such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Chennai. This charge is being levied only on the food orders and not on orders made on Swiggy’s quick commerce vertical, Instamart.

Moreover, this platform fee is also being levied on Swiggy One users which come under a paid membership program that benefits customers across all its platforms including Instamart, Dineout and Swiggy Genie.

Swiggy spokesperson confirmed the development and said, “The platform fee is a nominal flat fee charged on food orders. This fee helps us operate and improve our platform and enhance app features to deliver a seamless app experience.”

The Prosus-backed company has been endeavouring to cut costs, dispose off the non-viable business verticals and aim for profitability. The company is reportedly undertaking these activities to make a debut on the stock market soon. 

The company shut down its meat marketplace vertical in January and also laid off 380 employees as part of a company-wide restructuring activity. 

The SoftBank-backed food delivery major sold off its cloud kitchen business to Kitchens@ in March this year. Cloud kitchen operator Kitchens@ acquired Swiggy's Access Kitchens business through a share swap deal wherein Swiggy became a stakeholder in Kitchens@.

Swiggy achieved a ‘decacorn’ status last year after it raised about $700 million from US-based investment firm Invesco. However, a recent filing reveals that Invesco has slashed Swiggy's valuation to $8 billion from $10.7 billion.

Decacorns are privately-held firms whose valuation exceeds $10 billion.

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