Chingari, the homegrown short-video making app, has reported a remarkable growth in its revenue and a significant reduction in its losses for the fiscal year 2023. The company attributed its success to its pivot to a paid but private live streaming app and its foray into the crypto and NFT space.
Chingari’s revenue surges 2.3 times to Rs 113 crore
According to its financial statement filed with the Registrar of Companies (RoC), Chingari’s revenue from operations spiked 2.3 times to Rs 113 crore in the fiscal year ending March 2023, up from Rs 49 crore in FY22. The sale of services was the only source of revenue for Chingari in the last fiscal.
Chingari used to be a TikTok clone until FY23 where it allowed users to create and post short-videos. However, in the beginning of the ongoing fiscal year, the company made a pivot to become a paid but private live streaming app which connects users and creators. The company claimed that this move helped it increase its user retention and engagement rates.
Chingari’s losses plummet 70% to Rs 42 crore
Chingari also managed to reduce its losses by 70 per cent to Rs 42 crore in FY23 from Rs 139 crore in FY22. The company achieved this by controlling its expenses and improving its margins.
The application development constituted 32 per cent of the overall expenditure which increased by 16.3 per cent to Rs 50 crore in FY23. Chingari’s employee benefits cost surged 3.8 times to Rs 46 crore in FY23. However, the company’s advertising and promotional cost declined significantly to Rs 29 crore in FY23 from Rs 113 crore in FY22.
The legal professional, subscription membership, rent, traveling, and other expenditures took the company’s overall cost to Rs 156 crore in the previous fiscal year. As a result, the company’s EBITDA margin improved to -36.3 per cent. On a unit level, the company spent Rs 1.38 to earn a rupee in FY23.
Chingari ventures into crypto and NFT space
Besides its core business of short-video making and live streaming, Chingari also entered the crypto and NFT space in FY23. In August 2022, Chingari launched its crypto token called $GARI and was set to make a debut on six global exchange platforms – FTX, Huobi, Kucoin, OKEX, Gate.IO, and MEXC Global.
The company also roped in Bollywood actor Salman Khan to launch the NFT marketplace and reward platform. The company claimed that its crypto and NFT initiatives helped it attract more users and creators to its platform and generate additional revenue streams.
Chingari’s future plans and challenges
Chingari has raised a total of Rs 360 crore across rounds while its total outstanding losses stood at Rs 223 crore until March 2023. The company had a total current assets of only Rs 24 crore at the end of FY23.
The company faces stiff competition from other short-video making apps such as Moj, MX TakaTak, Josh, and Roposo, which have also gained popularity after the ban of TikTok in India. Moreover, the company has to deal with the regulatory and security challenges of operating in the crypto and NFT space.
Chingari’s co-founder and CEO Sumit Ghosh said that the company is confident of achieving profitability and becoming a market leader in the short-video and live streaming segment. He also said that the company is working on adding more features and services to its platform to enhance the user experience and satisfaction.
Comments