Sodexo picks up minority stake in Zeta; deal values company at USD 300 mn

Fintech company Zeta on Tuesday said Sodexo Benefits and Rewards (SBR) has picked up a minority stake in the company for an undisclosed amount. The transaction values the company at USD 300 million, and the funds will be used for expanding business in the US, the UK, Europe and South East Asia, Zeta said in a statement.

Zeta, which started operations in 2015, has over 14,000 corporate clients and more than 1.9 million users using its employee benefits and corporate gifting platform. It has partnerships with organisations such as RBL Bank, IDFC First Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank.

"Today's banking and fintech ecosystem requires cloud-native, privacy-aware, inherently secure, API (application programme interface) first banking and payment solutions. With this new investment, we want to further our vision to accelerate to a world where payments are invisible and seamless," Zeta co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Bhavin Turakhia said. He added that the company will expand its operations to over 15 countries in the next two years.

Co-founders Bhavin Turakhia and Ramki Gaddipati have till date invested USD 40 million, the company said. Avendus Capital was the exclusive financial advisor to Zeta. Sodexo has been a strategic partner of Zeta since 2017, SBR CEO Aurelien Sonet said.

"This investment will enable the Sodexo group to benefit from Zeta's seamless payment experience and offer a comprehensive suite of solutions to our consumers. Zeta and Sodexo are already working together on deploying Zeta's platform across several Sodexo subsidiaries across different regions," he added. Operating in 72 countries, Sodexo serves 100 million consumers daily through its on-site services, benefits and rewards services etc.