Dunzo faces legal notice from 7 firms over unpaid dues

NEW DELHI: Homegrown quick-grocery delivery provider Dunzo has received a legal notice from at least seven companies since March this year, according to media reports.

According to Moneycontrol, citing sources, Dunzo had received legal notices from Google India, Nilenso, Clover Ventures, Facebook India Online Services Private Limited, Cupshup, Koo and Glance.

Overall, Dunzo's outstanding vendor debts total approximately Rs 11.4 crore, nearly double the Rs 5-6 crore previously estimated.

Clover Ventures, an agritech startup, recently demanded that Dunzo clear dues that have now totalled over Rs 2 crore, according to the legal notice that Clover Ventures sent to Dunzo, while Cupshup, an advertising company, also sent a legal notice to Dunzo demanding to pay Rs 1 crore that it owes Cupshup for the services provided.

Cupshup said that Dunzo has promised money on multiple occasions in the past but never made payments, according to the report.

"The outstanding amount is substantial and owing to the delay in payments, my client has suffered severe financial hardships. My client is also responsible for the livelihood of its employees and hence cannot keep waiting for the payments," Cupshup's legal notice was quoted as saying.

Moreover, lock-screen platform Glance sent a notice demanding Dunzo to pay Rs 58 lakh for the services that the quick-grocery delivery provider availed.

Glance typically runs ads for companies on the lock screens of phones.

The microblogging website Koo had subleased office space from Dunzo earlier this year and vacated the space.

However, Koo has not yet received a refund of its security deposit of over Rs 62 lakh.

"Despite our client vacating and handing over the vacant possession of the demised premises to you on March 31, 2023, you have failed to refund the security deposit back after deducting certain amounts, and thereby breached the terms of the Agreement," a legal team representing Koo was quoted as saying.

The slew of legal notices comes after Dunzo faced a legal notice by Facebook India Online Services Private Ltd and Bengaluru-based software consultancy firm Nilenso over unpaid dues of Rs 4 crore.

Google India, Dunzo's second-largest investor after Reliance Retail, sent Dunzo a legal notice requiring the startup to pay over Rs 3.1 crore to the tech giant for various services rendered, the report mentioned.

"Google has made numerous requests to Dunzo Digital for payment of an outstanding principal balance due and owing Google in the amount of (Rs) 2,88,31,760.16. However, said amount remains unpaid," a legal notice which the tech giant's legal firm was quoted as saying.

Meanwhile, Dunzo has said it will not be able to pay employees' salaries until early September, a further delay from the earlier deadline of July 20.

The company has also delayed the August salary for senior employees to September 4 as well, it said in an email seen by TechCrunch.