Suumaya Industries acquires majority stake in agritech startup payAgri

Suumaya Industries Ltd on Tuesday said it has acquired 51 per cent stake in agri-tech startup payAgri Innovations to expand its farm business. The company did not disclose the deal value. Suumaya Industries, which is into textile business, has recently ventured into agri-commodity business through its 100 per cent subsidiary Suumaya Agro Ltd. Mumbai-based Suumaya Industries, which is listed on the NSE, had posted a net profit of Rs 406 crore and a revenue of Rs 4,263 crore during the last fiscal.

The company, through this subsidiary, has acquired a majority of 51 per cent stake in payAgri Innovations Pvt Ltd, a tech-driven agri and food business firm that seeks to address the problems of farmers, processors and consumers in the agri value chain, Suumaya Industries said in a statement. Ushik Gala, Chairman and Managing Director of Suumaya Industries, said, the company has embarked onto an ambitious journey with Suumaya 2.0 strategy. “Diversifying into the agri business is a new pathway for the company which is unfolding new opportunities and markets for us.

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The company has already made substantial inroads into the segment and we are most certain that this highly scalable and sustainable business would be the next big growth engine for the company,” he said. The acquisition would enable Suumaya Agro to gain a strong foothold in the agri value chain business in India. “The capital infusion by Suumaya Industries will help drive the growth and expansion of payAgri as a farmer centric value chain focused hybrid bulk & retail supply chain model,” Gala said.

The acquisition will help the company in getting access to the Southern markets, entry into higher value agri commodities as well as wider range of customers and vast access to the farmers network. “The investment in payAgri not only underlines our commitment to exponentially grow the agri business but also see huge potential in the new commerce agri-fintech which will further boost the digital ecosystem for millions of farmers, consumers and agro and food MSMEs,” Gala said.

Founded in 2017 by KVM Rajkumar and Rajeev G Kaimal, payAgri is a tech-driven agri and food business company. It is a farm-gate level operator with investments in primary processing infrastructure for the focused value chains such as spices and coconut. payAgri has built strong expertise in chilly, turmeric, cardamom, coriander, coconut, paddy, maize, millets and wheat value chain. It caters to both B2B segment with commodities and B2C segment with value added products.

Number of Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs) registered with payagri are 70 whereas number of farmer members covered are 70,000 and number of farmers produce and products listed on payAgri online Market are 210.