Homegrown quick-grocery delivery provider Dunzo finds itself in the midst of a legal dispute as it faces a legal notice from Facebook India Online Services Private Ltd (“FBI”) and Bengaluru-based software consultancy firm Nilenso. The notice highlights unpaid dues of INR 4 crore, as reported by the media.
As per sources cited by Moneycontrol, Dunzo has made partial payments to Facebook but still has an outstanding amount of approximately INR 1.5 crore to settle with the tech giant. The outstanding dues are related to the use of Facebook’s advertising services, for which the full payment has not been made yet.
Google, Dunzo’s second-largest backer, has recently served a legal notice to the startup, demanding the settlement of unpaid dues.
“Dunzo defaulted in making its payments to FBI under the Contract, despite repeated efforts, verbally and in writing, to rectify the delinquency, Dunzo acknowledged its liabilities and started making the payment to FBI. However, the payment was insufficient to settle all the outstanding balances under the account,” the legal notice read.
Based on the report, the total demand notices for the startup would be within the range of INR 5-6 crore.
During the period when Dunzo was still in negotiations with Facebook, the report revealed that Nilenso, a company offering contract software engineers, had also issued a demand notice to Dunzo under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC), seeking payment for unpaid dues.
After settling approximately INR 1 crore from its total outstanding amount, the Bengaluru-based startup still has around INR 2.5 crore pending.
As per the report, there is pending litigation between Nilenso and Dunzo.
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.
The delay is attributed to the startup’s concentration on “streamlining our cash flow to establish a more sustainable business for the future,” as stated by the Bengaluru-based company.
Read More: Hyperlocal commerce player Dunzo defers salaries for some employees, cites cash-flow constraints
