This Diwali, Meesho goes the IPO way

Hello,

Looks like everyone is in a festive mood, thanks to the extended Diwali holidays! 

According to a report by logistics intelligence platform ClickPost, non-metro Indian cities drove this year’s online Diwali shopping boom, accounting for nearly three-quarters of total ecommerce volume. 

“Tier III cities alone accounted for 50.7% of all orders in 2025. Combined with Tier II (24.8%), Bharat represents nearly three-quarters (74.7%) of the total order volume, confirming its role as the undisputed engine of ecommerce scale,” the report highlighted.

On the food delivery front, Swiggy and magicpin have reported a massive surge in orders, with Swiggy seeing cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Kolkata leading the indulgence, while Surat, Thiruvananthapuram, and Vadodara are joining in with equal enthusiasm.

Meanwhile, amidst soaring gold prices, Indian buyers resorted to coins rather than jewellery this Dhanteras; overall gold sales during the festival were 10–15% lower in volume terms compared to last year. 

ICYMI: India’s gold reserves crossed the $100-billion mark for the first time last week!

Speaking of priceless items, the Louvre in Paris fell victim to a highly professional robbery by men who stole “priceless” historic jewellery in a seven-minute, well-organised heist. 

The world’s most-visited museum was suddenly closed on Sunday after the break-in targeted pieces in two glass cases at its Apollon gallery, where the French crown jewels are held.

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• This Diwali, Meesho goes the IPO way
• Reinventing festive gifting this Diwali

Here’s your trivia for today: Which countries celebrate Diwali as a national holiday?

Ecommerce

This Diwali, Meesho goes the IPO way

Ecommerce platform Meesho has filed its updated draft red herring prospectus with the SEBI, as it gears up for its public debut. Through this IPO, the Bengaluru company plans to raise up to Rs 4,250 crore through a fresh issue of equity shares, along with an offer for sale of up to 17.56 crore shares by existing shareholders.

Key takeaways:

• Elevation Capital, which holds a 13.61% stake in the ecommerce player, plans to offload 5.54 crore shares acquired at a weighted average of Rs 3.04 per share. Peak XV, which has a combined stake of 12.8%, plans to offload about 3 crore shares acquired at a weighted average of Rs 4.29 per share.
• Dutch investor Prosus, with a 12.34% stake, and SoftBank, with a 9.31% stake, are not offloading any shares in the IPO, Meesho’s DRHP showed.
• Meesho’s losses widened to Rs 3,941 crore in FY25 from Rs 327 crore in FY24, owing to one-time exceptional items, including a reverse flip tax and other taxes attached with the reorganisation of the company to a public entity, additional costs due to accelerated ESOP held by its promoters, as well as an increase in advertising expenses.

SMBStory

Reinventing festive gifting this Diwali

The Indian sweets market earns the most revenue in times of celebration. This festive season, the category is experiencing a transformation. A new wave of D2C brands is reshaping how consumers buy, gift, and enjoy mithai, blending traditional recipes with modern design, premium packaging, and digital reach.

Changing times:

• For most D2C mithai brands, Diwali accounts for nearly 50% of annual revenue, with corporate orders driving a significant portion of growth. “Corporate gifting is no longer just a festive formality. It’s a reflection of company culture and gratitude,” says Sameer Seth, Founder and CEO, Bombay Sweet Shop.
• Budgets have not necessarily surged, but the intent has shifted from volume to value. Employee hampers typically range from Rs 1,500–3,000, while client or business associate gifts range between Rs 3,000 and Rs 10,000. 
• Health consciousness and ingredient transparency are shaping purchase decisions. “Consumers today want mithai that’s as pure as it looks beautiful, handmade, preservative-free, and made from honest ingredients,” says Sid Mathur, Founder, KHOYA Mithai.

News & updates

• Crypto: Chinese tech giants, including Alibaba-backed Ant Group and ecommerce group JD.com, have paused plans to issue stablecoins in Hong Kong after the government raised concerns about the rise of currencies controlled by the private sector, Financial Times reported.
• M&A: Middle Eastern bank Emirates NBD will buy a 60% stake in RBL Bank for $3 billion, in the largest cross-border acquisition in India’s financial sector. Emirates NBD will invest $3.05 billion in the bank through a preferential issue of shares, RBL Bank said in a statement to exchanges.
• AI dominance: Wikipedia is often described as the last good website on an internet increasingly filled with toxic social media and AI slop. But it seems the online encyclopedia is not completely immune to broader trends, with human pageviews falling 8% year-over-year, according to a new blog post from Marshall Miller of the Wikimedia Foundation.

What you should watch out for

• The National Stock Exchange and the Bombay Stock Exchange will remain open on Monday, October 20. The stock markets will be closed on Tuesday, October 21, on account of Diwali Laxmi Puja, as well as on Wednesday, October 22, for Balipratipada.
• This year, Muhurat trading will be conducted on October 21. It will start at 1:45 pm on Tuesday and continue for one hour.
• Earnings reports next week, including from Tesla and Netflix, will provide a deeper look at US corporate profits, while delayed US inflation data will mark another test of the stock market.

Which countries celebrate Diwali as a national holiday?

Answer: Besides India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Mauritius, Guyana, Trinidad and Tobago, Suriname, Singapore, and Malaysia celebrate Diwali as a national holiday. 

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