IME Group Enters E-Commerce with Investments in Sastodeal
IME Group – one of Nepal’s leading business conglomerates announced today that it has entered into an agreement to make a significant investment in Sastodeal – Nepal’s leading homegrown e-commerce company. The investment from IME Group is a part of Sastodeal’s ongoing Series B fundraising round to accelerate the company’s growth plans.
Hem Raj Dhakal, Cofounder and Managing Director of IME Group, said, “We have witnessed Sastodeal grow from a humble startup to become a household name in Nepal. We have made this decision to invest in the company because of their exceptional team, the brand, the company’s historic performance, the overall industry growth, and the potential in the future. We also see that going forward, Sastodeal can bring great synergies to IME portfolio companies such as digital wallet, FMCG, remittance, automotive, logistics, banking, entertainment, hospitality, and others. The investment in Sastodeal also serves IME’s motive to promote socio – entrepreneurship and support the growth of microenterprise as Sastodeal provides the platform for thousands of SMEs to grow their business from across the country. We look to actively participate in Sastodeal’s growth as an investor and also a board member in the company.”
Amun Thapa, Founder, Sastodeal, said, “We are very excited to onboard IME Group and execute our growth plans together. IME Group has infrastructure and brand presence in all parts of the country; especially in Tier II & III markets. We have plans to leverage each other's infrastructure, technology, and portfolio to provide superior services to millions of our customers and thousands of businesses pan Nepal. We are very confident that this investment and synergy will have a lasting positive impact on the ecosystem and the nation. I believe IME’s investment in Sastodeal will also encourage other businesses in Nepal and abroad to consider e-commerce as a lucrative investment opportunity.”
Sastodeal last year had entered into a strategic partnership with Walmart-owned Flipkart. The company is also backed by other marquee investors including – Dolma Impact Fund (Nepal’s leading PE / VC), Televentures (leading tech investment firm), and ICTC Group (one of Nepal’s largest business groups).
The investment amount from IME is kept undisclosed. Sastodeal commented that it is in the market to raise a bigger fundraising round and is currently engaging with other potential investors.
