'Bit late to the party': Is Zomato becoming profitable? Deepinder Goyal drops hint

Zomato’s CEO Deepinder Goyal congratulated Vijay Shekhar Sharma after the latter reported EBITDA level profitability (before ESOP costs) of Rs 31 crore in the December quarter. In a Twitter post, he wrote, “Congratulations, @vijayshekhar and @Paytm on becoming profitable. Sorry, a bit late to the party – was so busy working on our own profitability ;-).”   Zomato is all set to announce its results for the December quarter on Thursday, February 9. For its July-August-September result, the foodtech unicorn’s consolidated revenue for the quarter surged 62.20 per cent to Rs 1,661.30 crore from Rs 1,024.20 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. However, its consolidated net loss stood at Rs 250.80 crore which was higher than June quarter’s (Rs 186 crore loss) but less than the year-ago’s Rs 434.90 crore loss.   Paytm also announced its quarterly results a couple of days back. The fintech firm hit EBITDA level profitability (before ESOP costs) of Rs 31 crore in the December quarter —three quarters ahead of its guidance. EBITDA before ESOPs is a new-age metric start-ups use to ascertain their operating profits. Paytm, however, continues to be a loss-making business at a consolidated level. But it managed to narrow its consolidated net loss from Rs 778 crore in the December quarter of FY22 to Rs 392 crore in Q3 FY23.    Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Chairman, MD & CEO, Paytm, said in a statement to shareholders, “This has been made possible due to the relentlessly focused execution by our team. The team was asked to focus on growth with quality revenues that contribute to the bottom line. We have achieved this milestone without losing sight on growth opportunities and keeping all compliances as well as risk factors under a strict watch.”