CCI Clears Kedaara Capital’s Stake Buy in Porter’s Parent Company

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has approved the acquisition of a stake in SmartShift Logistics Solutions Private Limited, the parent company of Porter, by Kedaara Sapphire Holding and Kedaara Capital Fund IV AIF — both affiliates of Kedaara Capital.

Key Highlights    

• Target Company: SmartShift Logistics Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
• Brand Operated: Porter — an on-demand logistics platform
• Acquirers: Kedaara Sapphire Holding and Kedaara Capital Fund IV AIF
• Deal Type: Minority stake acquisition
• Regulatory Approval: Cleared by CCI on July 8, 2025 da 

Context & Impact 

• Porter’s Growth: Recently raised $200 million in Series F funding, co-led by Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management, valuing the company at $1.2 billion.
• Unicorn Status: Porter became India’s third logistics unicorn in 2025, after Netradyne and Juspay.
• Exit of Early Investors: Peak XV Partners (formerly Sequoia Capital India & SEA) and Kae Capital exited during this round.

Even though Kedaara Capital is acquiring only a minority stake in Porter (via SmartShift Logistics Solutions Pvt. Ltd.), CCI approval was required due to the deal crossing certain regulatory thresholds under India’s competition law.

Under the Competition Act, 2002, any acquisition—minority or majority—must be notified to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) if it crosses specified asset or turnover thresholds.

Porter is a tech-enabled, on-demand logistics platform operated by SmartShift Logistics Solutions Pvt. Ltd. It was founded in 2014 by Pranav Goel, Uttam Digga, and Vikas Choudhary, and has grown into one of India’s leading players in intra-city and inter-city logistics.

In May 2025, Porter raised $200 million in Series F funding, co-led by Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management, pushing its valuation to $1.2 billion — making it India’s third logistics unicorn of the year.

With Porter’s valuation crossing $1.2 billion after the Series F round, the transaction likely exceeded the prescribed thresholds, triggering mandatory CCI review.

CCI’s role is to ensure that even minority acquisitions don’t lead to anti-competitive practices, such as:

• Gaining strategic influence over a market leader
• Creating barriers for smaller players
• Coordinated behavior among investors in the same sector

Porter Closes Series F Funding Round led by Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management

Porter, India’s leading on-demand Goods Transport Agency (GTA), has successfully closed its Series F funding round led by Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management along with continued support from existing investor, Vitruvian Partners. The round included a healthy mix of primary investment in the Company and secondary exits to few existing shareholders.

Founded in 2014, Porter has transformed intra-city logistics across India, offering a comprehensive suite of services including on-demand intra-city transport, packers and movers, and enterprise logistics solutions. With this fresh capital, the company is set to expand operations across multiple cities, with the goal of serving millions of MSMEs and enabling livelihood opportunities for over 1 million gig workers. With a sharp eye on growth and innovation, Porter plans to channel the capital into team expansion, technological development, and operational excellence— while continuing to build a greener logistics network aligned with national decarbonization efforts.

Uttam Digga, Co-Founder & CEO, Porter, said, “We are pleased to welcome Kedaara Capital and Wellington Management as our strategic partners. Since our inception, we have been committed to making urban logistics more efficient, intelligent, and inclusive — supporting MSMEs, empowering gig workers, and strengthening the communities we serve. With this, we look forward to accelerating our growth and building world-class, sustainable logistics solutions for businesses and communities across the globe."

We would also like to acknowledge our early investors who played a pivotal role in supporting Porter’s growth journey, and we are deeply grateful for their unwavering support, guidance, and belief in our vision throughout this transformative period."

Anant Gupta, Partner and Ashutosh Sardesai, Director at Kedaara Capital, said “We are excited to partner with Porter, the undisputed leader in India’s intra-city logistics space. In a largely unorganized and underserved market, Porter has built a tech-first, asset-light platform that delivers seamless, reliable logistics solutions at scale. Their strong execution, deep market understanding, and unwavering focus on customer and partner experience have created significant network advantages. We look forward to supporting Uttam, Pranav, and the entire Porter team as they continue to drive innovation, empower driver-partners, and expand their leadership across India’s intra-city logistics ecosystem.”

Prakhar Singh, Asia Sector Lead, Wellington Management, added, “We admire Porter’s resilience and execution-first mindset, which has helped them create their leadership position in the intra-city logistics space. What sets them apart is how deeply they’re embedded in the ecosystem—organizing a largely unstructured market from within, using technology to create meaningful impact for MSMEs and gig workers. We’re excited to partner with them as they scale their purpose.”

Shailesh Lakhani, MD, Peak XV, said, "When our journey started with Porter 10 years ago, the company was one amongst many in local goods transport. Uttam, Pranav and Vikas were clear on their vision and approach and why it was the right one. Today the company is the market leader, and more importantly has made the process of sending goods reliable, more efficient and transparent in cities in India and now abroad. In the journey, their name has become a verb and to say '’I am Portering it" means the goods will be there soon. We wish the company and their new partners all the best and thank the Company and the management for the partnership."

As Porter completes 10 years in business, the milestone signifies its resilience, consistent value delivery, and leadership in logistics across 22 cities in India and 2 countries. Guided by its purpose of “moving a billion dreams, one delivery at a time” Porter has now evolved into an ecosystem touching the lives of over 30 lakh customers and 3 lakh gig workers every month in India.

IndigoEdge acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Porter on this transaction.

About Porter:

Founded in 2014, Porter is a leading Goods Transport Agency (GTA) offering a wide range of intra-city and inter-city logistics solutions. Guided by its purpose of “moving a billion dreams, one delivery at a time” Porter has now evolved into an ecosystem touching the lives of over 30 lakh customers and 3 lakh gig workers every month across 22 cities in India. Backed by a team of 2,600 employees, the company has spent the last decade digitizing urban logistics infrastructure, fostering MSME collaborations, and accelerating India’s journey towards an organized and connected economy.

The company strives to improve the lives of gig-workers by providing them with financial access, affordability, and financial independence. Porter started operations in India as Smartshift Logistics Solutions Private Limited and has since expanded its footprint internationally, now operational in two countries. Porter has multiple segments within logistics—from on-demand trucks and two-wheelers to Packers & Movers, Porter Enterprise and intercity courier services. To learn more, visit www.porter.in

About Kedaara Capital

Kedaara is an operationally oriented private equity firm pursuing control and minority investment opportunities in India. It currently manages over $6 billion through investments in several market-leading businesses across a variety of sectors including financial services, consumer, pharma/healthcare, and technology/business services. Since its inception, Kedaara has remained singularly dedicated to its stated strategy of focusing on investments built through trust-based relationships with best-in-class entrepreneurs and management teams across secular fast-growing end markets. Kedaara combines the strengths of a well-networked, highly experienced local investing and operating team, with the experience of their strategic partner, Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, a global private equity firm.

About Private Investing at Wellington Management

Wellington’s Private Investing platform manages more than US$8.9bn in assets under management, and invests globally across venture capital, private credit, and private real estate in multiple stages and sectors (consumer, technology, healthcare, financial services, biotech, energy, industrials, climate tech, and real estate). The team accesses its deep research, networks, and resources across public and private markets to broaden perspectives which aim to benefit both investors and entrepreneurs.

For more than 20 years, Wellington has been investing in private markets, launching its first dedicated private capital fund in 2014. As one of the world’s largest independent investment management firms, Wellington serves as a trusted adviser to over 2,500 clients in more than 60 countries, managing US$1.3 trillion for pensions, endowments and foundations, insurers, family offices, fund sponsors, global wealth managers, and other clients.

Porter Appoints Subir Ghosh, Former CEO of Planet M, to Its Advisory Board

Porter, a tech-enabled intra-city logistics company has announced the appointment of seasoned intrapreneur, Subir Ghosh to its Advisory Board. Subir was a former Director at Aegis Aspire Consultancy Services Ltd and former CEO of Planet M Retail Ltd.

With over three decades of experience across a diverse range of consumer oriented businesses like telecom, retail and consumer goods, Subir brings extensive and diverse experience in creating businesses from scratch, scaling up early stage businesses as well as running mature businesses. As a part of the startup team at The Mobile Store, he conceptualised and launched the first 200 stores of the brand. He has been instrumental in creating The Institute of Customer Experience Management in partnership with the Singapore-based Service Quality Centre and IIM Indore, which was later acquired by Manipal Global Education Group in 2013.

As part of Porter’s advisory board, Subir will assist the team with strategy and planning, with the core aim of providing the best experience to the drivers as well as customers on the platform.

Speaking on this appointment Mr Pranav Goel, Co-Founder & CEO, Porter said, “Subir has been instrumental in setting up operational metrics and driving substantial growth throughout his career of three decades. His experience with consumer oriented businesses will be an invaluable asset for Porter’s efforts to imbibe industry-best practices.”

Mr. Subir Ghosh added, “Last mile transportation has always been a challenge for companies, given the heavy fragmentation and poor tech adoption in the intra-city trucking industry. Customer experience can be severely hit with inefficient last mile transport services. Porter is effectively solving this and is working towards enhancing productivity of businesses by offering innovative transportation solutions. I’m excited about being part of this journey”.

Since its launch in 2014, Porter has seen a steady traction and has a customer base of 25,000+ regular clients and 75,000+ one-time users. Currently present in five cities i.e. Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad with a fleet of 5000 vehicles, Porter plans to expand its presence in 15 other major cities like Pune, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Lucknow and Coimbatore in the next few years.