Blinkit turns profit as Instamart's loss balloons to Rs 858 cr—quick commerce divergence

Q4FY26 splits the q-comm field: Eternal's Blinkit posted Rs 37 cr adjusted EBITDA on NOV of Rs 14,386 cr (+95% YoY) with 2,243 dark stores en route to ~3,000 by Mar 2027. Swiggy's Instamart grew GOV 68.8% to Rs 7,881 cr but EBITDA loss widened to Rs 858 cr across 1,143 stores.

— FiledFri, 15 May, 2026, 16:21 IST·First seen Fri, 15 May, 2026, 16:20 IST·Source Financial Express · BrandWagon

What happened

Q4FY26 results show Eternal's Blinkit profitable (Rs 37 cr EBITDA) while Swiggy's Instamart loss widened to Rs 858 cr, despite both growing quick commerce

Key facts

  • Blinkit adjusted EBITDA Rs 37 cr profit
  • Instamart adjusted EBITDA loss Rs 858 cr
  • Blinkit NOV Rs 14,386 cr (+95% YoY)
  • Instamart GOV Rs 7,881 cr (+68.8% YoY)
  • Blinkit 2,243 dark stores, target ~3,000 by Mar 2027
  • Instamart 1,143 dark stores
  • Eternal food delivery NOV Rs 9,757 cr (+18.8%)
  • Swiggy food delivery GOV Rs 9,005 cr (+22.6%)
  • Swiggy MTU 18.3 mn
  • Eternal target $20bn NOV FY28, $1bn EBITDA FY29
  • Swiggy cash ~Rs 15,500 cr

Why this matters

Quick commerce is bifurcating into a winner-funded category leader and a cash-consuming challenger, opening windows for tuck-in dark-store acquisitions, private-label partnerships, or distressed regional q-comm rollups before the gap compounds further.