Deepinder Goyal Resigns as Eternal CEO; Blinkit Founder Albinder Dhindsa to Lead Zomato Parent from Feb 1

It’s Thursday, January 22, 2026, and the Indian tech world is still reeling from the news that dropped yesterday.¹ Deepinder Goyal, the face of Zomato for nearly two decades, is stepping down as Group CEO of Eternal Ltd.² The thing is, this isn’t a “retirement.” Or nothing.

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He’s handing the keys to Albinder Dhindsa—the guy who turned a struggling Grofers into the quick-commerce juggernaut that is Blinkit.³ Let’s be real—Blinkit is basically carrying Eternal right now, with revenue numbers that are starting to make the food delivery business look like a side hustle. Those too.

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The Eternal Shuffle: Field Notes

It’s an ongoing situation where the “founder” is moving to the “lab” while the “operator” takes over the ship. Here’s the ground reality:

• The Succession: Starting February 1, 2026, Albinder (or “Albi” as they call him) becomes the Group CEO.⁴ Deepinder moves to Vice Chairman. The thing is, Deepinder says he’s drawn to “higher-risk ideas” that don’t fit inside a public company.⁵

• The Math: Eternal just reported a ₹102 crore profit for Q3 FY26.⁶ But look at the split: Blinkit’s revenue was ₹12,256 crore while food delivery was just ₹2,676 crore.⁷ Let’s be real—Blinkit is the empire now.

• The “Accidental” Leader: Albinder wasn’t always a tech bro.⁸ He’s an IIT Delhi (Civil Engg) and Columbia MBA grad who started as a transportation analyst.⁹ The thing is, he actually worked at Zomato in 2011 as Head of International Expansion before leaving to start Grofers.¹⁰ It’s a full-circle moment.

• The Relationship: Deepinder and Albinder aren’t just colleagues; they’re old friends. When Zomato bought a sinking Blinkit in 2022, everyone thought Deepinder was bailing out a buddy. And here’s the kicker—that “favor” turned into the most profitable acquisition in Indian startup history.

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The Albinder Dhindsa Profile

And Here’s the Kicker…

The thing is, Deepinder is moving to the Vice Chairman role to work on things like longevity science (via his $25M fund ‘Continue’) and health-tech (Temple).¹¹ Or nothing. He’s basically saying, “Eternal is a well-oiled machine now; I want to go break things again.”

One side comment—Deepinder is also forfeiting his unvested ESOPs (stock options) back to the company pool.¹² Let’s be real—that’s a massive “flex” of confidence in the next generation of leaders. It’s an ongoing situation where the “founder-led” era is shifting into a “professional-founder” era. Those too.

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End…

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