Urban mobility

startup

Rapido

more than doubled its gross order value (GOV) in FY25 to $1.25 billion, riding new services, people aware of the operational details told ET.

However, this 2.5x jump from the $500 million GOV in FY24 has come with the company drifting further from profitability, increasing its cash burn in recent months.

“The company is fulfilling 3–3.5 million orders per day across its different platforms—two-, three-, four-wheelers and hyperlocal logistics—but this has come at the cost of deviating from its path to profitability,” one of the people cited above said.

“Overall, across ride-hailing form factors, Rapido has captured about 40 per cent market share. In the four-wheeler segment, specifically, it has eaten into Ola’s share,” the person added.

Rapido started four-wheeler ride-hailing in December 2023, and in January this year, it had said that the service will be expanded to 500 cities across India.

Last year, the Bengaluru-based company raised $200 million in a funding round led by WestBridge Capital, valuing it at $1.1 billion. This was followed by a $30-million investment from Dutch investor Prosus in February 2025.

Flush with capital, it has been ramping up spending to grab market share.

Rapido’s monthly cash burn touched $4–5 million (₹40–45 crore) in 2025—a sharp departure from last year’s efforts to rein in losses, people cited above said. During the July–September 2024 quarter, the company had narrowed its losses to ₹17 crore from ₹74 crore in the same period the year before.

“The burn is likely to increase further as Rapido steps up customer acquisition in ride-hailing and prepares to launch its food delivery vertical,” an investor aware of the developments said without raising any concern over the move.

“It hasn’t spent millions like its peers to build supply,” the person explained, citing Rapido’s subscription model that charges drivers a flat fee for access to customers—unlike Uber and Ola, which operate on a commission basis for four-wheeler ride hailing.

Rapido did not respond to detailed queries.

In April, ET had reported that Rapido held a 20 per cent market share in the four-wheeler ride-hailing space, compared with Ola’s 30 per cent and Uber’s 50 per cent. Since then, sources said Rapido has gained further ground, chipping away at both the bigger rivals.

Next step
As first reported by ET in March, Rapido is preparing to launch its food delivery service. The company has begun hiring executives from Zomato and Swiggy and is in talks with Indian franchise operators of McDonald’s, KFC, and Pizza Hut, as well as other quick-service restaurant (QSR) chains and cloud kitchen operators with high order volumes.

To be sure, publicly listed food delivery major Swiggy is an investor in Rapido and Prosus is a common investor across Swiggy and Rapido.

A senior food delivery executive said Rapido’s success in ride-hailing won’t necessarily translate to food delivery, which demands different execution capabilities. “In ride-hailing, there’s minimal interaction between stakeholders. In food delivery, restaurants expect a point of contact to resolve issues. Rapido will need to build that muscle,” the executive said.

Founded in 2015 by Arvind Sanka, Pavan G and Rishikesh SR, Rapido has already been fulfilling food orders for Swiggy since its 2022 investment.

“There’s a learning curve Rapido will have to navigate in this segment,” the investor cited above said.