Zilingo was supposed to be the fashion technology platform that connected Southeast Asian garment factories directly to global retailers. Raised $310 million. Hit a $970 million valuation. Then the board discovered accounting irregularities, suspended the 30-year-old CEO, and the whole thing unraveled in weeks. A startup that pitched itself as the operating system for fashion turned out to not have its own books in order.
Founded
2015
HQ
Singapore
Total Raised
$310 million
Founder
Ankiti Bose, Dhruv Kapoor
Status
Liquidated (2023)
Website
www.zilingo.comTHE ORIGIN STORY
Ankiti Bose was 23 when she co-founded Zilingo with Dhruv Kapoor in 2015. She had been working at Sequoia India and spotted a gap during a trip to Bangkok's Chatuchak market — thousands of small garment manufacturers with no way to reach global buyers.
The original idea was a marketplace connecting these small fashion sellers to consumers. Think Etsy for Southeast Asian fashion.
The app launched and gained traction quickly in Thailand and Indonesia. But Bose had bigger ambitions than a marketplace.
WHAT THEY ACTUALLY DO
Zilingo pivoted from a consumer marketplace to a B2B fashion technology platform. The idea was to provide the entire supply chain stack for fashion: sourcing, manufacturing, inventory management, trade financing, and distribution.
Small factories could use Zilingo to find buyers. Brands could use it to source production.
The platform would take a cut of every transaction and charge for software tools. It was an ambitious vision — basically Shopify plus trade finance plus supply chain management for the garment industry.
THE PRODUCTS
Zilingo's platform offered several products aimed at the fashion supply chain. The consumer marketplace connected small sellers with buyers across Southeast Asia.
Zilingo Trade was the B2B platform for wholesale sourcing from factories. Zilingo Asia Mall handled cross-border e-commerce.
The company also offered trade financing through partnerships, letting manufacturers get paid faster while buyers got extended payment terms. The technology stack included inventory management, order processing, and analytics tools for sellers.
HOW THEY GREW
High-profile fundraising and geographic expansion. Zilingo raised aggressively — Series C of $226 million led by Sequoia India and Temasek brought the total to $310 million and the valuation to $970 million.
Bose was a compelling founder: young, charismatic, and telling a story about empowering millions of small manufacturers in developing countries. She was featured on Forbes 30 Under 30 and became one of the most visible startup founders in Southeast Asia.
The company expanded across Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, Bangladesh, and India.
THE HARD PART
The numbers didn't add up. In early 2022, Zilingo's board received complaints about financial irregularities.
An independent audit found discrepancies in the company's reported revenue and expenses. Questions emerged about whether revenue had been inflated and expenses improperly categorized.
The board suspended Ankiti Bose in March 2022 while investigating. Bose disputed the allegations and accused the board of a power grab.
The internal conflict became public and messy. Investors lost confidence.
The company could not raise new funding.
WHO BACKED THEM
Sequoia Capital India was the most prominent backer, leading multiple rounds. Temasek Holdings, Singapore's sovereign wealth fund, co-led the Series C.
Other investors included Sofina, EDBI (the investment arm of Singapore's Economic Development Board), Burda Principal Investments, and Amadeus Capital Partners. The investor roster was impressive — sovereign wealth, blue-chip VC, and European growth capital all believed in the vision.
Sequoia India's involvement was particularly notable because Bose was a former Sequoia analyst.
POST-MORTEM
Why It Failed
Zilingo's collapse was a governance crisis that exposed financial irregularities. In early 2022, the board received whistleblower complaints about the company's accounting.
An independent audit by Kroll found discrepancies between reported and actual financials. Revenue appeared to have been inflated.
Some expenses were improperly categorized.
Ankiti Bose was suspended as CEO in March 2022. She fought back publicly, claiming the suspension was orchestrated by board members with personal vendettas.
The he-said-she-said played out in the press across Singapore, India, and global tech media. Meanwhile, the business was burning cash and couldn't raise new funding.
By mid-2022, Zilingo had laid off most of its staff. The company tried to find a buyer or restructure.
Neither materialized. Zilingo entered voluntary liquidation in 2023.
Sequoia India took a total loss. The failure highlighted the risks of high-growth startup culture in Southeast Asia, where founder charisma and fundraising velocity can outpace basic financial controls.
Money Burned
$310 million
The Lesson
If your fundraising story is growing faster than your actual business, someone will eventually check the receipts.
Related Profiles
Head-to-Head
Compare Zilingo vs another company.