“How Reliance Killed Dunzo’s Future with Its Veto Power”

In 2016, Dunzo came up with a brilliant idea: deliver anything in 24 minutes. It was a game-changer, way ahead of its time. Unlike others, Dunzo focused on perfecting its operations city by city, ensuring customers got the best experience before expanding further. They were building something revolutionary.

Then came Reliance—and everything fell apart.

In 2022, Reliance Retail invested $200 million in Dunzo for a 25.8% stake. At first, it seemed like a great partnership. Reliance wanted to improve JioMart’s quick delivery capabilities, and Dunzo could scale faster with Reliance’s support. But what looked like help quickly turned into control.

Reliance’s deal gave them veto power over major decisions. This meant Dunzo couldn’t raise money, expand, or make big moves without Reliance’s approval. By 2023, when Dunzo tried to raise $100 million to survive, Reliance refused to commit its $25 million share, blocking the entire funding round.

To make matters worse, JioMart—Dunzo’s largest client and owned by Reliance—cut payments by 30-40%. This crushed Dunzo’s already struggling revenue. With no money and shrinking income, Dunzo had to shut down its quick delivery service, close dark stores, delay salaries, and lay off over 300 employees, including co-founders.

Dunzo’s numbers show how badly it was hit. In FY22, their revenue was just ₹54 crore. Compare that to Swiggy Instamart’s ₹2,036 crore or Zepto’s ₹140 crore in their first year. Dunzo couldn’t compete, not because they lacked ideas, but because Reliance tied their hands.

What Reliance did was no accident. They drained Dunzo to fill the gaps in JioMart’s business while ensuring Dunzo couldn’t grow independently. A promising startup with Google’s first-ever direct investment in India is now on the verge of shutting down, not because of bad decisions, but because of Reliance’s veto power and monopoly tactics.

This isn’t just about Dunzo—it’s about how big players like Reliance crush innovation. Dunzo’s story is a harsh reminder that when giants step in, they often take more than they give, leaving startups to collapse under their control.