Investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem redacted to an all year low in the budget week. Between July 22 and 27, startups managed to cumulatively raise a meagre $43.1 Mn via 12 deals, down 365% from $200 Mn raised across 25 deals in the preceding week. 

It is pertinent to note that seven of the deals materialised this week didn’t disclose the financial terms of their transactions. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ July 22- July 27]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Despite the plunge in overall funding aggregated, fintech emerged as an investor favourite in the week. The week’s top two fund rounds, Stable Money’s $14.7 Mn Series A round and NeoGrowth’s $11 Mn debt, took fintech to the top spot at a sectoral level.
• The week saw FAAD Capital backing four agritech startups with an infusion of over $121K. The firm’s investment turned agritech as the sector with the maximum number of deals and FAAD as the most active investor in the startup ecosystem.
• The week saw no seed funding deal materialise.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• During the budget speech, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the setting up of an INR 1,000 Cr venture capital (VC) fund. She said that the government has increased its focus on the space economy and private sector-driven research and innovation at the commercial scale.
• Packaged food startup Wingreens Farms is eyeing the raise of $4.3 Mn debt from investors including S Gupta Family Investments, Saket Agarwal, Reena Singhal, Sanjeev Agarwal, among others
• In an exchange filing, beauty ecommerce major Nykaa said that it is looking to raise INR 125 Cr (about $15 Mn) via non-convertible debentures (NCDs) from an undisclosed foreign portfolio investor. Its board has approved and authorised the issuance of up to 12,500 NCDs at a face value of INR 1 Lakh each to raise the amount.
• Adtech unicorn InMobi-owned mobile content provider Glance is in advanced talks with existing investors, including Google, to raise $250 Mn. The talks are expected to materialise in the coming weeks.
• Former defence secretary Ajay Kumar led venture capitalist firm MountTech Growth Fund has marked the first close of its fund Kavach at INR 250 Cr (around $29.9 Mn). The VC is targeting a total corpus of INR 500 Cr for Kavach. 
• Electric mobility startup Kazam is raising $5 Mn in a funding round led by Licious and Vertex Ventures. It plans to use the capital to fuel its growth and expansion plans.
• PharmEasy-owned diagnostics platform Thyrocare Technologies is acquiring the Punjab-based pathology diagnostic business of Polo Labs to expand its presence in northern India.
• EV major Ola Electric is looking at a public listing as early as in the first fortnight of August. It plans to raise around $740 Mn via a combination of a fresh issue and an offer for sale.
• Captain Fresh is looking to acquire Poland-based food and beverage manufacturing company Koral to expand its footprint in the European market.

The post From Stable Money To Incuspaze – Indian Startups Raised $43 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Funding momentum across India’s startup ecosystem has seen a slight revival three weeks after a slump in investment activity. Between July 15 and 20, startups cumulatively raised $200.16 Mn across 25 deals, a 45% jump from $138.04 Mn raised last week via 15 deals.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ July 15- July 20]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• The week’s biggest fundraise was fintech unicorn slice’s $30 Mn debt funding from Neo Asset Management’s Credit Opportunities Fund. Hefty deals also materialised for major startups like BluSmart, Lenskart and Newme this week.
• Propelled by Lenskart’s $19.1 Mn funding round and Newme’s $18 Mn round, the ecommerce sector continued to be the major traction to investors this week. Startups in the space cumulatively raised $48.6 Mn via six deals this week.
• BluSmart’s $24 Mn funding round and Namma Yatri’s $11 Mn round made the travel tech sector the second favourite sector for investors this week. Startups in this sector raised $40.48 Mn via four deals this week.
• For the second consecutive week, seed funding grew 17% to $9.78 Mn from last week’s $8.33 Mn.

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• Talent management and influencer marketing firm Collective Artists Network has acquired AI-based platform galleri5 to expand its creator and content ecosystem. The acquisition will allow the firm to expand its tech-based integrated solutions ranging from talent management, creator tech, influencer marketing and consultancy.
• Listed gaming major Nazara has fully acquired Paper Boat Apps Pvt Ltd after picking up 48.42%  from its promoters Anupam and Anshu Dhanuk for INR 300 Cr. It will allow the company access to PBA’s healthy cash flows that can be reinvested for organic as well as inorganic growth.

Fund Launches This Week

• Real estate investment management firm Altern Capital launched its maiden CAT-II Alternative Investment Fund, named Jiraaf Au India Real Estate Fund – I, with a target corpus of INR 250 Cr. It will have an additional greenshoe option of INR 100 Cr, the company said.
• Launching a new venture capital firm called PROMAFT Partners, ex-investment head of Alibaba Group India, Raghav Bahl, and former partner at 9Unicorns (now 100Unicorns), Soham Avlani, floated an  INR 1,000 Cr maiden fund. The fund will be sector agnostic and plans to invest in 10-12 startups.
• Yali Capital launched an early stage fund worth INR 810 Cr to back startups operating in the deeptech sector. The fund will focus areas, including chip design, robotics, genomics, smart manufacturing, aerospace and AI, among others, in the deeptech space.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Unicorn India Ventures has announced a partial exit from neo diagnostics startup Sascan Meditech. The exit from Sascan has generated 6X returns for the fund as UIV continues to hold a substantial stake in the company.
• Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek plans to invest $10 Bn in India over the next three years. The sovereign wealth fund pumped in a record $3 Bn in the country in FY24 and plans to increase its headcount in India from 20 currently.
• Excitel cofounder Vivek Raina, along with other startup founders and executives, launched an incubator to foster startups in Jammu & Kashmir called “Launchpad Kashmir”. The incubator will take in incubate 24 early stage startups based out of the union territory by March 2025.
• Listed lendingtech startup Moneyboxx is looking to raise $32.4 Mn through a mix of preferential issue and warrants. It will deploy the fresh funds to fuel its growth plans and expand its reach in rural India.
• AdTech unicorn InMobi is looking to get listed in the Indian public markets at a $10 Bn valuation. For this, it is planning to relocate its headquarters from Singapore to India in the coming months.
• Beer Bira 91 maker B9 Beverages is eyeing to make its public markets debut by 2026. It has tapped investment banking firm Morgan Stanley for its pre-IPO process.
• Urban Company raised $50 Mn this week from Bengaluru-based VC firm Dharana Capital via a secondary share sale. The secondary stake sale, which saw the startup’s employees as well as other stakeholders participate, allowed Snapdeal cofounders Rohit Bansal and Kunal Bahl’s venture capital (VC) firm Titan Capital to exit the company with INR 111 Cr, 195X of their INR 57 Lakh investment in 2015.
• Kalpavriksh Fund exited D2C beauty and health brand The Ayurveda Experience (TAE) with over 6X return. It first invested in the D2C startup in 2019 in its Series A fundraise when it was a part of Centrum Group.
• Deeptech-focused venture studio IndusDC has set aside INR 100 Cr for FY25 and FY26 to identify and help co-build tech startups across industrial and energy sectors. It plans to build five startups in the next two years and more than 50 new companies globally over the next decade.
• The Central government is working on setting up an INR 750 Cr Category-II AIF named ‘Agri Fund For Startups and Rural Enterprises’ to help startups operating in the agriculture and allied sectors.

The post From slice To BluSmart – Indian Startups Raised $200 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem continued to remain subdued in the second week of the ongoing month. Between July 7 and 13, startups raised $138.04 Mn across 15 deals, a nearly 22% drop from the $176 Mn raised via 16 deals in the preceding week. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [July 7- July 13]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Fintech startup Dezerv scored the biggest cheque this week, bagging $32 Mn in its Series B funding round from investors Premji Invest, Elevation Capital, Matrix Partners, and Accel Partners.
• Propelled by hefty funds secured by Infra.Market and GOAT Brand Labs, ecommerce emerged as the investor favourite sector this week. Startups in the space cumulatively raised $49.3 Mn via five deals.
• From a sectoral funding lens, fintech trailed ecommerce this week. Fintech startups managed to pocket $34.6 Mn via two deals this week.
• Seed funding jumped 173% this week to $8.33 Mn from last week’s $3.05 Mn this week.

Mergers and Acquisitions This Week

• Listed dronetech startup ideaForge bought an undisclosed stake in spacetech startup GalaxEye Space for INR 8.28 Cr. The acquisition will help it develop drone-based sensors for fog and foliage penetrations.
• AI-led fintech startup CASHe bought Centcart Insurance Broking Services to foray into the insurance broking vertical. This acquisition enables CASHe to offer a wider range of products from multiple insurance partners.
• Construction giant L&T will be acquiring semiconductor design startup SiliConch Systems for INR 183 Cr by September 15. The deal will comprise an upfront amount of INR 133 Cr payable at the time of closing the transaction.
• Astrology SaaS platform Melooha bought language translation and astrological guidance startup Munitalks in a cash and stock deal pegged at INR 70 Lakh. Melooha seeks to leverage Munitalks’ multilingual support and astrology consultation services to boost its astrological offerings. 
• Edtech startup Schoolnet acquired quiz-based learning app Genius Teacher in an all-stock deal. With this, Genius Teachers’ cofounder and chief executive Advitiya Sharma will join Schoolnet as chief growth officer.
• Edtech major Adda247 acquired Ekagrata Eduserv for an undisclosed amount to foray into the CA test preparation segment. Ekagrata’ founder Anshul Agrawal will now lead Adda24’s CA category as director.
• Continuing its acquisition spree, Nazara Technologies-backed NODWIN Gaming has now picked up an additional 43.49% stake in Freaks 4U Gaming GmbH for INR 212.9 Cr. This extends its shareholding in the gaming marketing services company to 57%. 

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• Logistics unicorn BlackBuck submitted its IPO papers to the markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). As per its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), the startup’s public issue will comprise a fresh issuance of shares worth INR 550 Cr and an offer for sale (OFS) component of up to 2.16 Cr shares.
• Jaipur-based D2C men’s grooming brand Menhood will list on the NSE Emerge on July 16 and plans to raise INR 19.5 Cr via its IPO. It has set its price brand in the range of INR 71-75.
• As per reports, D2C furniture brand Pepperfry has deferred its IPO plans after engaging with bankers over the past year to enter the public market. The company will increase its focus on growth and profitability in the current financial year.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Goldman Sachs is looking to invest $30-50 Mn in software as a service (SaaS) provider MoEngage. As per reports, it has decided to buy shares of MoEngage from some of its early investors.
• Former Premji Invest partner Atul Gupta has launched a venture capital firm Trident Growth Partners (India). The VC will make growth-stage equity investments in startups operating across consumer, financial services, enterprise software and technology, industrial and manufacturing and healthcare sectors.
• Debt financing platform Anicut Capital marked the final close of its maiden pre-IPO equity fund, named as Equity Continuum fund, at INR 300 Cr. It will write cheques in the range of INR 50 Cr to INR 60 Cr and will back 5-6 late stage companies.
• Early-stage VC firm Orios Venture Partners has postponed the closure of its third fund for the second time. As per reports, the firm is expected to now mark the fund’s final close in December. Earlier, the close was pegged at $150 Mn. 

The post From Dezerv To Infra.Market – Indian Startups Raised $138 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After a massive week-on-week drop in funding last week, the month of July started relatively on a somber note. Between July 1 and 6, the Indian startups collectively mopped up around $176 Mn in funding across 16 deals. This is 10.3% lower than $196.4 Mn raised by 17 startups in the last week of June. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ July 1 – July 6 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Beauty ecommerce platform Purplle bagged $120 Mn from Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, making it the biggest fundraise of this week. Besides this funding, the startup further an ESOP liquidation exercise worth INR 50 Cr for its employees.
• Fuelled by Purplle’s fundraise, the ecommerce sector became the funded sector with an investment of $129.6 Mn. Besides, the sector also witnessed the most number of deals this week – six. 
• The seed funding dipped to $3.05 Mn this week across three, an almost 50% lower than $6.9 Mn reported last week.
   

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Bengaluru-based logistics and distribution startup Ripplr is all set to raise $4.7 Mn in a debt from IPO-bound Northern Arc. 
• Listed Nazara Technologies’ subsidiary Nextwave Multimedia will be completing the acquisition of casual freemium card game UTP- Ultimate Teen Patti in a month.
• Shelving its IPO plans, Hospitality unicorn OYO is now raising $50 Mn (about INR 415 Cr) from financial services provider InCred. 
• Delhi NCR-based agritech startup Arya.ag is raising $29 Mn (about INR 242 Cr) in a fresh funding round from a new investor – Blue Earth Capital
• Peak XV Partners MD Rajan Anandan has said that the VC firm has a dry powder of INR 16,000 Cr to invest in Indian startups.
• CoinCDX has acquired Dubai-based virtual assets trading platform BitOasis, marking its overseas expansion
• Next Bharat Ventures IFSC Private Limited, a subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation, has launched an INR 340 Cr social impact investment fund.

The post From Purplle To Matter – Indian Startups Raised $176 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After a big funding week, investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem has entered into the slow lane again. Between June 24 and 29, startups cumulatively bagged $196.47 Mn across 17 deals, a 75% decline from $800.5 Mn raised across 21 deals in the preceding week.

However, it would be unfair to say that funding trends plunged drastically this week. Of the $800.5 Mn secured last week, around $665 Mn was raised by quick commerce unicorn Zepto alone. Hence, the rest of the startup ecosystem only saw $135.5 Mn capital infusion in the week. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ June 24 – June 29 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• The week’s largest funding round saw NBFC Northern Arc bagging a debt funding of $75 Mn from FMO. On the back of this, fintech emerged as the investors’ favourite this week. Startup’s in the space cumulatively raised $77.4 Mn across three deals.
• The highest number of deals materialised for ecommerce startups this week as players in the space raised $48.3 Mn via five deals.
• However, seed funding dipped this week by 69% to $6.9 from last week’s $22.7 Mn. 

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Moving towards a public market debut, electric two-wheeler manufacturer Ather Energy’s board passed a resolution to convert the startup into a public company from private. The startup’s name has changed to Ather EnergyAther Energy from Ather Energy Pvt Ltd earlier, its regulatory filings revealed.
• Within a week of raising big bucks, quick commerce major Zepto has initiated conversations with multiple investors to raise $400 Mn at a likely valuation of $4.6 Bn. This will be 25% higher than the $3.6 Bn at which it raised $665 Mn last week.
• UK-based private equity (PE) firm Finnest has invested $160 Mn to acquire a majority stake in cloud kitchen startup Kitchens@. The fresh capital will be utilised to fuel the startup’s business operations and expand its footprint.
• Gold loan provider Rupeek is close to bagging $24 Mn in another down round. The funding is expected to be a mix of primary and secondary transactions and will be raised at a valuation of $250 Mn, a 60% cut.
• US-based ecommerce giant Amazon has infused $72 Mn in its Indian fintech arm Amazon Pay India. Amazon Pay allotted 59.99 Cr shares to Amazon Corporate Holdings and 59,952 Cr shares to Amazon.com for INR 10 apiece.
• Nazara-owned gaming company NODWIN has completed the acquisition of marketing services company Freaks 4U Gaming GmbH through a share swap valued at up to INR 271 Cr.
• Edtech unicorn upGrad is planning to allot 25 Lakh NCDs and 3.75 Lakh OCDs to EvolutionX Debt Capital to raise a debt of $34.4 Mn. The capital will be used to fuel growth and fund operating expenses.

The post From Northern Arc to Bluestone – Indian Startups Raised $196 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After months of speculations, quick commerce unicorn Zepto finally announced the close of its mega funding round this week. The startup raised $665 Mn at a $3.6 Bn valuation, making it one of the largest cheques bagged by a company in recent history. For context, Zepto’s funding alone exceeds the cumulative $512 Mn raised by Indian startups in January 2024.

Overall, Indian startups cumulatively raised $800.5 Mn across 29 deals this week. This was a 296% increase from the $201.8 Mn secured by the startups last week across 21 deals. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ June 17 – June 22 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Zepto’s funding round took the consumer services to the top of the sectoral funding charts.
•  Trailing consumer services was the fintech sector, which saw startups raise $50.3 Mn across nine deals.
• Peak XV Partner, IndiaQuotient, Matrix Partners India, and Dr. Vaidya’s Arjun Vaidya were the most active investors this week, backing two startups apiece.
• Seed funding shot up again this week, zooming 141% to $22.7 Mn from last week’s $9.4 Mn .

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• Education-focussed non-banking financial company (NBFC) Avanse Financial Services has filed its DRHP with the SEBI for an INR 3,500 Cr public issue. The IPO will comprise a fresh issuance of shares worth INR 1,000 Cr and an OFS component of INR 2,500 Cr.
• Fintech unicorn Pine Labs is deliberating a public offer of $1 Bn at a valuation of over $6 Bn, a couple of years after shelving its $500 Mn IPO plan.
• The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has cleared the IPO of Ola Electric Mobility. The markets regulator issued its observation letter to the company on June 10.
• With plans to go public this fiscal, logistics unicorn BlackBuck converted into a public company. The company’s name has been changed from Zinka Logistics Solutions Private Limited to Zinka Logistics Solutions Limited. It is now seeking to raise $300 Mn.
• Online travel aggregator (OTA) ixigo made a stellar debut on the bourses. The stock listed at INR 135 apiece on the BSE, a 45.16% premium from its issue price of INR 93. Similarly, the shares opened at INR 138.10 per share on the NSE, a premium of 48.5%.

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• Picking up an additional 49% stake for INR 98 Lakh, NSE listed OTA Yatra Online agreed to acquire Adventure and Nature Network Private Limited (ANN). The transaction raised its shareholding from 50% to 99%.
• Zomato is looking to acquire Paytm’s movie ticketing and events business, Paytm Insider. While the talks are in preliminary stages and no binding agreement is signed as of now, reports speculate the deal size to be about INR 1,500 Cr.
• Venture capital (VC) firm Ananta Capital’s beauty and wellness arm Guardian acquired a 55% stake in D2C personal care startup Anveya Living in an undisclosed deal. Guardian plans to increase its stake in the startup in the near future.
• Supply chain financing startup Veefin Solutions picked up a 26% stake in GST compliance startup Regime Tax Solutions. The stake acquisition integrates Regime’s GST compliance and accounts automation solutions, TaxGenie and PayInvoice, with Veefin’s platform.
• Aditya Birla Group’s fashion arm TMRW acquired a 16% stake in the Virat Kohli-backed WROGN for INR 125 Cr in an all-cash deal. The fresh funds will be used to expand WROGN’s offline footprint.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• NBFC UGRO Capital raised INR 1,265 Cr ($151.6 Mn) by allotting compulsory convertible debentures (CCDs) worth INR 258 Cr and warrants worth INR 1,007 Cr to investors.
• Omnichannel jewellery brand Bluestone is looking to raise $100 Mn from Peak XV Partners, Steadview Capital and Think Investments in its pre-IPO round. The deal will value the startup at $900 Mn.
• US-based venture capital firm General Catalyst will soon be merging with Delhi NCR-based early stage investment firm Venture Highway to expand its presence in India. Post the merger, the Venture Highway brand will cease to exist, creating a combined entity named General Catalyst India
• Logistics startup Ecom Express is in talks with existing investors Warburg Pincus, CDC Group, and Partners Group to raise INR 350 Cr -INR 400 Cr ($41 Mn-$47 Mn) at a unicorn valuation.
• Shortly after withdrawing its IPO papers, hospitality major OYO is about to raise around INR 1,000 Cr from family offices of Mankind Pharma’s promoters Ramesh Juneja and Rajeev Juneja and stock market expert Anand Jain.
• SoftBank-backed B2B SaaS startup Whatfix is looking to raise $100-150 Mn in a mix of primary and secondary transactions. The round is expected to be led by private equity firm Warburg Pincus.
• VC firm GVFL has marked the first close of its seed stage fund, Prarambh Fund, at INR 100 Cr. It will be backing 25-30 seed startups across B2B SaaS, healthtech, agritech, climate tech and deeptech sectors with an average ticket size of INR 1-3 Cr.
• 8X Ventures announced the first close of its INR 200 Cr DeepTech Fund with commitments for INR 60 Cr. It aims to back 18-20 early stage deeptech startups with an initial ticket size of INR 2-5 Cr each and total investments of up to INR 20 Cr each in 8-10 startups.
• VC firm VentureSoul Partners launched its maiden debt fund, VentureSoul Capital Fund I, with a target corpus of INR 600 Cr. It will primarily focus on investments in tech startups in diversified sectors, including fintech, B2C, B2B and SaaS.

The post From Zepto to Bira 91 – Indian Startups Raised $800 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Shortly after a lacklustre investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem, funding started picking up momentum in the middle of the ongoing month. Between June 10 and 15, startups cumulatively bagged funding of $201.8 Mn across 21 deals, which marks over 2X jump or 107% uptick from $97.3 Mn raised across 10 deals in the preceding week. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ June 10 – June 15 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Battery-swapping startup Battery Smart’s $65 Mn Series B funding round was the week’s biggest funding round. The equity round is a mix of primary and secondary investments and saw participation from a mix of new and existing investors, including MUFG Bank, Panasonic, Ecosystem Integrity Fund (EIF), Blume Ventures and British International Investment (BII). The round also saw its initial backer Orios Venture Partners making a partial exit with 29X returns. 
• Battery Smart’s funding round propelled the cleantech sector to top funding chart at a sectoral level. The sector saw startups raking in $71 Mn via three deals.
• Interestingly, deeptech tied cleantech in terms of the secured number of deals. Startups in the space netted $53 Mn via three deals. However, the ecommerce sector witnessed the highest number of deals materialising this week, with startups bagging $51.9 Mn through six deals. 
• Blume Ventures, Matrix Partners India and Venture Catalysts emerged to be the most active investors this week, backing two startups each. 
• Seed funding levels also improved significantly this week, going up 214% from last week’s $3 Mn to $9.4 Mn this week.

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• About six months after filing its DRHP, two-wheeler electric vehicle manufacturer Ola Electric got the approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its  initial public offering (IPO). The company will be looking  to make its public market debut within a month.
• Online travel aggregator ixigo’s public issue received bids for 430.40 Cr shares against the 4.37 Cr on offer, implying a 98.34X oversubscription rate. QIBs led the charts as they oversubscribed their quota by 106.73X.

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• 360 One has signed an agreement to buy ET Money from Times Internet for INR 365.8 Cr in a cash and stock deal. Of this, the wealth and asset company will pay INR 85.8 Cr in cash to the company.
•  Continuing its acquisition streak, listed gaming Nazara Technologies’ subsidiary NODWIN Gaming International Pte Ltd, bought middle eastern esports and gaming production company Ninja Global FZCO (Ninja) for $3.57 Mn in a cash and stock deal.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Beauty ecommerce marketplace Purplle reportedly raised $100 Mn in a mix of primary and secondary investments led by Abu Dhabi’s sovereign fund ADIA. The fundraise valued the startup at $1.2-1.3 Bn, a 15% increase from its erstwhile fundraise. 
• Fintech startup KreditBee’s NBFC arm bagged a $32 Mn Debt from Yubi, Dzerv, Neo Group, and OfBusiness, among others between April and June. The debt is likely to fuel its working capital needs and business expansion plans.
• Ola Electric is eyeing a $12 Mn debt raise from venture debt fund Alteria Capital. Its board has approved the issuance of 10,000 non-convertible debentures (NCDs) with face value of INR 1 Lakh each to the investor. 
• D2C personal care startup 82°E will see a $6 Mn infusion as part of its extended seed funding round by its founder Deepika Padukone and her father Prakash Padukone’s investment entity, Ka Enterprises. The infusion is expected to be completed by June 20.
• Amid ongoing speculations about Zepto’s upcoming funding round, reports now found out that  the round could be the tune of $650 Mn. The round will see the quick commerce unicorn’s valuation soar to $3.5 Bn, 2.5X its erstwhile valuation of $1.4 Bn. 
• D2C wearables major boAt’s parent Imagine Marketing India is in talks with three investors to raise an undisclosed amount. Its cofounder and CEO Sameer Mehta said the fundraise will be “strategic” in nature instead of just raising capital. 
• Pavestone VC’s maiden fund Pavestone Technology Fund raised $1.8 Mn from Colruyt Group India, the engineering arm of Belgian food and grocery retailer Colruyt Group. The VC has set a target corpus of $107.7 Mn for the fund.
• Early-stage VC firm Huddle Ventures’ Fund II has been oversubscribed by 20% ahead of its final close. The VC firm has activated the green shoe option following the oversubscription and is aiming for a final close at INR 150 Cr in the next four to eight weeks.
• Fintech Neo group’s asset management arm Neo Asset Management has marked the final close of its maiden special credit opportunities fund at $308 Mn. Neo claims to have backed 12 companies and made two exits within a time span of 15 months via the fund
• VC firm Unifi Capital has floated two new funds in GIFT City, Gujarat. While the first fund will focus on Indian growth businesses benefiting from demographic shifts and sectoral reforms, the second will aim to assist Indian HNIs in diversifying their portfolios. 
• Silicon Valley-based early-stage venture fund South Park Commons (SPC) has entered India in collaboration with Flipkart cofounder Binny Bansal and has opened its first international outpost in Bengaluru.

The post From Battery Smart to Foxtale- Indian Startups Raised $201 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

During the week of the Indian elections, funding momentum in the world’s third largest startup ecosystem saw a significant decline. Between June 3 and 8 startups raised a total of $97.3 Mn across 10 deals. This represents a nearly 55% decrease from the previous week, when startups secured $217.84 Mn across 31 deals.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ June 3 – June 8 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• The week’s largest funding round saw lending tech startup Fibe (erstwhile EarlySalary) raise $90 Mn in its Series E funding round led by TR Capital, Trifecta Capital and Amara Partner. In this, the startup bagged only $65.5 Mn in primary capital and the rest came through secondary transactions. 
• Buoyed by Fibe’s funding, the fintech sector topped the funding charts in terms of amount raised. The lending tech startup’s funding was the lone deal in the sector this week.
• Enterprisetech saw the highest three deals materialise this week. Startups in the segment bagged $12 Mn via three deals. 
• Continuing on its downward trajectory of the past few weeks, seed funding went down by 67% this week to $3 Mn.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Despite the lagging primary funding infusion of the week, the period was rich in terms of secondary transactions. Peyush Bansal-led Lenskart saw Temasek and Fidelity buy $200 Mn worth stakes from undisclosed stakeholders. With the investment, Temasek effectively doubled down its investment in the startup. On the other hand, Fidelity now joins the startup’s cap table. 
• The week saw Flipkart cofounder Sachin Bansal completely exit two-wheeler electric vehicle maker Ather Energy. He sold his 2.2% of his shareholding in the EV major to Hero MotoCorp for $14.8 Mn, while Zerodha cofounder Nikhil Kamath lapped up his remaining 5.3% stake for $33.7 Mn.
• CarDekho’s insurance arm InsuranceDekho is looking to acquire a majority stake in the wealthtech startup BankSathi in a share swap deal. The move will help the insurtech platform build its credit products portfolio.
• In a bid to become one of the leading sports and entertainment focus publishers in the US market, Nazara Technologies’ subsidiary Absolute Sports (parent of Sportskeeda) will be acquiring all the assets of Pennsylvania-based entertainment news site Soap Central for $1.4 Mn in an all-cash deal.
• Amazon’s acquisition of MX Player from Times Internet is in its final stages, Inc42 has learnt. The ecommerce giant has confirmed that it has signed an agreement to purchase some assets of the video streaming platform. 
• Adding on to the string of initial public offerings (IPOs) coming out of the Indian startup ecosystem this year, online travel aggregator ixigo is set to make its public debut on June 10. At a price band of INR 88-93 per equity share for its public issue, it is expected to raise a total of INR 740 Cr at the upper end. Ahead of its IPO, it raised over INR 333 Cr from 23 anchor investors at INR 93 per equity share. 

The post From Fibe To Astrotalk- Indian Startups Raised $97 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After muted funding trends over the past two weeks, investment activity in the Indian startup ecosystem picked up pace during the final week of May. Between May 27 and June 1, startups raised $217.84 Mn across 31 deals, a 273% increase from last week’s $58.36 Mn bagged across 16 deals. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [May  27 – Jun 1]

[Note: This week’s funding galore also includes deals from last Saturday (May 25).]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• With startups like TechnoSport and Libas bagging funds to the tune of $25 Mn and $18 Mn respectively, the ecommerce sector emerged to be the investor favourite this week. Startups in the space netted $56.2 Mn across five deals.
• Real Estate Tech unicorn Infra.Market raised $50 Mn in an additional funding round from Liquidity Group and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group’s MARS Unicorn Fund. The funding round drove real estate tech to become the second most funded sector this week.
• Further, the cleantech and fintech sectors, each saw the highest six deals materialise this week. Startups in the sector bagged $40.8 Mn and $22.7 Mn, respectively.
• Venture Catalysts was the most active investor this week, backing four startups.
• Seed funding tumbled down this week, with startups at this stage securing $7.7 Mn. This was a 41% decline from last week’s $13.12 Mn.

Startup Fund Launches Of This Week

• Venture Capitalist (VC) firm Sauce.vc Floats has floated an $30Mn (INR 250 Cr) fund, its third largest till date. With this, the investment firm will back 15-16 early stage consumer brands.
• Homegrown financial services firm Avendus launched its late-stage ‘Future Leaders Fund (FLF) III’ with a total corpus of $350 Mn (INR 3,000 Cr), along with a green shoe option of up to INR 1,500 Cr. It will look to make 10-12 investments with an average ticket size of $25 Mn to $35 Mn.
• 360 ONE Asset announced the launch of its late stage secondaries fund,‘Special Opportunities Fund-12’, with a target base corpus of $480 Mn (INR 4,000 Cr). The private equity (PE) firm has already made six investments from the new fund with an average ticket size of $18- $30 Mn (INR 150-250 Cr).
• Early stage consumer VC fund RPSG Capital Ventures has marked the final close of its second fund, Fund II at INR 550 Cr. Through the fund, it claims to have already invested in four direct-to-consumer (D2C) startups Supertails, Perfora, Rabitat and Headway.
• Former KKR India head Sanjay Nayar’s VC firm Sorin Investments marked the final close of its maiden fund at INR 1350 Cr. Under the fund, it has made 5 investments till date in Uniqus Consultech, Venwiz, Litestore, Freed and Shivalik SFB with a few more nearing closure.

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• Broadcasting giant Times Network bought technology media portal Digit.in from 9.9 Group via an undisclosed deal. The company will look to leverage its digital publishing capabilities to expand its footprint in the technology and gaming sectors.
• Fintech startup BharatX has forayed into the healthcare lending space with the acquisition of the healthcare startup Zenifi. As part of the deal, Zenifi’s cofounder Padam Kataria will join BharatX to spearhead its healthcare vertical.
• Parent of D2C unicorn Mamaearth, Honasa Consumer Ltd, has acquired the assets of Thane-based skincare company CosmoGenesis Labs for $480K (INR 4 Cr). With the buyout, it seeks to strengthen its research and development and manufacturing capabilities.
• Zerodha cofounder Nikhil Kamath, Capri Global Family Office, Sumeet Kanwar from Verity and Abhijeet Pai-led Wear Steels, have bought 10% stake in Infra.Market’s subsidiary RDC Concrete for $20 Mn.
• B2B marketplace IndiaMART InterMESH has acquired a 10% stake in fraud detection startup Baldor Technologies for INR 89.7 Cr (about $10.7 Mn) via a secondary transaction. The investment aligns with its long-term objective of providing various software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions for businesses.
• US-based ecommerce giant Amazon is in the final stages of acquiring Times Internet-owned video streaming platform MX Player. Sources told Inc42 that the ecommerce major is acquiring MX Player in an all-cash deal for a little over $100 Mn.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Shares of the coworking space provider Awfis were listed at INR 432.25 on the BSE, a premium of 12.8% from its issue price of INR 383. On the NSE, its shares were listed at INR 435 apiece, 13.5% higher than the issue price.
• Travel tech startup Atlys is in talks with existing investor Peak XV Partners and others to raise $15-18 Mn in its Series B round. It is said to be eyeing the fresh infusion at a valuation of $70 Mn.
• Electric two wheeler maker Ather is looking to raise $34 Mn (INR 286.5 Cr) in a mix of equity and debt as part of its latest funding round. It plans to raise INR 200 Cr in debt from Stride Ventures while the founders Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain are looking to infuse the rest of the capital.
• VC firms Xponentia Capital Partners, A91 Partners, and 360 ONE Asset have acquired stakes in deeptech startup SEDEMAC Mechatronics through a secondary transaction , giving full exit to the company’s early investors, Nexus Venture Partners, TR Capital and Montane Ventures. While the size of the round was $100 Mn, it included a primary infusion of around $9 Mn into the startup at a valuation of $260 Mn.
• Ratan Tata-backed omnichannel jewellery startup BlueStone is in discussions to secure close to $100 Mn in a pre-IPO funding round at a unicorn valuation. This would translate to a more than 2X jump from its erstwhile valuation of $450 Mn.
• As part of its ongoing Series A round, D2C kidswear brand Kidbea has seen Innov8 founder and angel investor Ritesh Malik, Nazara Technology founder Nitish Mittersain, and cardiovascular surgeon Dr Shriram Nene join its captable.

The post From Infra.Market to Zypp Electric- Indian Startups Raised $218 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem saw a significant decline throughout May. While funding momentum started slipping right from the get-go of the month, it fell to the lowest in the week between May 20 and 25. During the week, startups bagged $58.36 Mn across 16 deals, a 52% drop from $121.8 Mn raised across 21 deals in the preceding week.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [May  20 – May 25]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Buoyed by the $18 Mn funding secured by lendingtech startup Navi Finserv, the biggest paycheck of the week, the fintech sector emerged as the sweet spot for investors this week. Startups in the sector secured $23.9 Mn across 4 deals, the highest number of deals secured at a sectoral level.
• Startups in the ecommerce space also secured a similar number of deals, raising $3.5 Mn across 4 transactions. 
• Seed funding jumped more than 4X this week to $13.12 Mn from last week’s $3.5 Mn. 

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• With eyes on raising $450 Mn through the sale of dollar bonds, hospitality unicorn OYO officially deferred its plans to make a debut in the public markets. According to documents from the market regulator SEBI, the company officially withdrew its IPO papers on May 17. 
• Coworking startup Awfis’ public issue received 9.84 Cr bids as against the 86.29 Lakh shares on offer, resulting in an oversubscription of 11.4X. Retail investors led the pack as the quota was subscribed 21.1X.
• Online travel aggregator (OTA) ixigo public listing plans are now in high gear as it received a go-ahead from SEBI for its over INR 120 Cr IPO. The offer will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 120 Cr and an OFS component of 6.66 Cr shares.
• Insurtech unicorn Go Digit General Insurance’s (Digit) Go Digit made an underwhelming public market debut this week. Its shares were listed at INR 286 per share on NSE, a 5.1% premium of than the issue price of INR 272. 

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• Audio tech startup Noise acquired AI platform SocialBoat for an undisclosed amount. The startup will look to harness SocialBoat’s AI capabilities to bolster health and fitness features for its wearable devices.
• B2B fintech startup CashFlo acquired GST compliance platform Logitax for an undisclosed amount to fortify its accounts payable automation and supply chain financing platform .

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Home furnishing startup Vaaree is looking to raise $2.5 Mn as part of a Pre-Series A funding round from Capier Investments and Peak XV’s Surge. The company’s board passed a resolution to allot 3,063 CCPS to the new backers.
• Fashion brand Rare Rabbit is close to securing over $60 Mn in its maiden funding round. The round will be led by A91 Partners, which will invest $42 Mn and will see participation from Manyavar’s family office and Zerodha’s cofounder Nikhil Kamath
• Venture capital (VC) firm Caret Capital has launched Caret360 Accelerator, a 100-day outcome-focussed programme for early-stage startups. Under this programme, selected startups will receive up to INR 3 Cr in investment as well as an opportunity to secure further follow-on capital from the VC. 
• IVY Growth Associates launched Arigato Capital fund with a target corpus of around $29 Mn. With the Category I AIF fund, it will invest in startups across agritech, cleantech, GenAI, fintech, consumer brands and software-as-a-service (SaaS) sectors.
• EV cab-hailing startup BluSmart is looking to raise $25 Mn in its Pre-Series B round  in equity preference. The fundraise will see participation from major new and existing investors.
• D2C skincare brand WOW Skin Science is in talks with existing and new investors to raise $65 Mn-$75 Mn in primary capital at a valuation of $400 Mn. Besides existing investors like GIC and ChrysCapital, it is also in Japanese and Middle East-based funds for the round.
• Google has picked up a minority stake in Flipkart in a funding round led by the platform’s parent Walmart. The investment is likely a part of the ecommerce major’s larger $1 Bn fundraise.
• VC fund YourNest Venture Capital has partnered with deeptech enablement platform SanchiConnect to launch an accelerator for deeptech startups, Velocity Fast Track Startup Funding Program. It will invest INR 30 Cr in eight startups. 

The post From Navi Finserv to Portl- Indian Startups Raised $58 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Funding activity in the world’s third largest startup ecosystem saw a decline for the second consecutive week in May. Indian startups raised $121.8 Mn across 21 deals between May 13 and 18, a 45% decline from last week’s $220.2 Mn raised across the same number of deals.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [May  13 – May 18]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• The week’s biggest cheque was secured by fintech startup Propelld. Buoyed by its $25 Mn fundraise, fintech dominated the funding trend at a sectoral level. Startups in the space raised $33.1 Mn across three deals, the highest number of deals secured at a sectoral level.
• Gruhas Proptech and Venture Highway were the most active investors this week, backing two startups each.
• Seed funding continued to tumble down this week as well, with startups at this stage securing $3.5 Mn. This was a 58% decline from last week’s $8.4 Mn.

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• Making a bumper debut on the bourses, shares of B2B travel portal TBO Tek listed at INR 1,426 on the NSE on Wednesday, a 55% premium over its issue price of INR 920. Similarly, the company listed at INR 1,380 on the BSE at a premium of 50%.
• D2C meat delivery startup Zappfresh has set the ball rolling for its initial public offering (IPO). The Delhi NCR-based company transformed itself into a public company this week, marking its first major milestone in preparation for its public offering.
• Insurtech unicorn Digit’s public issue received 50.76 Cr bids against 5.28 Cr shares on offer, resulting in a 9.6X subscription. Its IPO comprises a fresh issue of shares worth INR 1,125 Cr and an offer for sale (OFS) element of 5.47 Cr shares.
• Global retail giant Walmart is currently exploring the “right time” for the ecommerce giant Flipkart’s IPO. Walmart International president and CEO Kath McLay said that the IPO plans stem from Flipkart’s growth trajectory as the company has been EBITDA positive for the last two quarters. 

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• US-based ecommerce giant Amazon has invested $199 Mn in its Indian Arm. Its local subsidiary, Amazon Seller Services Pvt Ltd, has allotted 160 Cr equity shares to at least two overseas entities.
• Early stage venture capitalist fund 9Unicorns has rebranded itself to 100Unicorns and launched its second fund that will have a corpus of $200 Mn and a green shoe option of $100 Mn. The fund will invest in 200 early stage startups.
• Battery-swapping startup Battery Smart is raising $45 Mn as part of a Series B round, which will see participation from Acacia Inclusion, Japan’s MUFG Bank, Blume Ventures, among others.
• Global investment firm KKR is looking to divest a 10% stake in NBFC startup InCred to Japan’s Mizuho Financial Group. The deal is expected to peg the fintech startup’s valuation 30-40% higher than its last valuation of $1.2 Bn.
• Enterprise tech startup Orbod is selling its AI platform focussed on the banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector, SuperScan, to listed fintech company Niyogin Fintech Ltd. Niyogin’s board has approved signing definitive agreements to acquire SuperScan.  
• London-based private equity firm Apax Partners is mulling investments in Indian pharmaceuticals, consumer, and consumer derivative markets. The firm has deployed a India-focused team to scout buyout opportunities and is also working on multiple deals at different stages across sectors.
• After launching an INR 200 Cr Category I Alternative Investment Fund, angel investing platform BizDateUp Technologies bought a 20% stake in waste management startup Duro Green for an undisclosed amount. 
• With an eye on beefing up its AI investments in India, Japanese conglomerate SoftBank is now mulling investing in Indian data centre and industrial robotics companies.

The post From Propelld To RED.Health — Indian Startups Raised $122 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investment activity in the Indian startup ecosystem was a low-key affair this week as compared to the previous six-day period. Between May 6 and 11, startups cumulatively raised $220.2 Mn across 21 deals, a 30% decline from last week’s $316.4 Mn secured in 23 deals. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [May  6 – May 11]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Despite the muted funding trends in the week, one mega deal materialised in the week for SaaS startup Atlan. The data collaboration software provider bagged $105 Mn in its Series C funding round, co-led by GIC and Meritech Capital. The round also saw Atlan’s post-money valuation climbing to $750 Mn.
• Buoyed by Atlan’s mega funding, enterprisetech rose to dominate funding trends at a sectoral level. Startups in the space raised $113.2 Mn across 5 deals, the greatest number of deals secured at a sectoral level.
• Peak XV Partners, Endiya Partners, Nitin Gupta, and Inflection Point Ventures were the most active investors this week, backing 2 startups a piece.
• Seed funding continued to tumble down this week, with startups at this stage securing $8.4 Mn this week. This is a 32% decline from last week’s $12.3 Mn. 

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• After raising INR 696.5 Cr from 47 anchor investors, B2B travel portal Travel Boutique Online or TBO Tek floated its initial public offering (IPO) on May 8. Its public issue got oversubscribed 86.7X on the final day for bidding on May 10, with investors bidding for 80.5 Cr shares as against 92.85 Lakh shares on offer. 
•  Taking its second stab at the public market, insurance tech unicorn Digit Insurance is set to float  its IPO on May 15 and close on May 17. The startup’s IPO will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 1,125 Cr and an offer for sales (OFS) component of 5.47 Cr. It has set a price band in the range of INR 258 to INR 272 per equity share.

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• Digital solutions provider Hexaware Technologies has acquired data consulting firm Softcrylic for an undisclosed sum. It has bought the US-based firm to strengthen its data and analytics capabilities.
• Private equity firm KKR announced that it will acquire medical devices company Healthium Medtech Ltd from an affiliate of funds advised by Apax Partners LLP for an undisclosed amount.

Other Major Developments Of The Week

•  Lending tech startup Niro is eyeing $4.3 Mn in a pre-Series B funding round. It is looking to raise the funds from Marui Group, along with existing investors like Elevar Equity, GMO Venture Partners, Rebright Partners, among others, at a valuation of $55 Mn.
• InCred Capital’s Incred Alternative Investments marked the first close of its maiden private equity fund with capital commitments of over INR 330 Cr. The Vivek Singla-led venture capitalist (VC) firm is targeting to close the fund at INR 500 Cr.
• Wealth management firm Client Associates announced the first close of its maiden Category II alternative investment fund (AIF) at INR 300 Cr. It will look to back 12-15 consumer tech startups at the Pre-Series A to Series B stages with cheque sizes in the range of INR 10 Cr – INR 50 Cr per deal.
• Murugappa Group’s EV arm TI Clean Mobility (TICMPL) will be raising INR 580 Cr in a mix of equity and compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS). PE firm GEF Capital will back the company via its two funds, GEF South Asia Growth Invest III and GEF South Asia EBT Trust III.
• Among CarTrade’s bull run on the bourses, Goldman Sachs Asset Management has increased its stake in the startup to 5.15%, becoming a substantial shareholder. It now possesses 2.4 Mn shares in the company, up 4% from the erstwhile 2.3 Mn.
• Ex-BharatPe CBO Pratekk Agarwaal-led VC firm GrowthCap is looking to close its maiden fund at INR 50 Cr in the next two months. It will be investing in fintech, SaaS, and deeptech startups.
• Pune-based software company Icertis is looking to raise $150 Mn via a secondary share sale, a deal that could see an increased investment from SoftBank.

The post From Atlan To Lendingkart — Indian Startups Raised $220 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After a significant drop in the capital raised by Indian startups in the last week of April, funding picked up in the world’s third-largest startup ecosystem in the first week of May. Between April 29 and May 4, Indian startups cumulatively raised $316.4 Mn across 23 deals, up 83.3% from last week’s $172.6 Mn secured across 21 deals.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Apr 29 – May 4]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Digital pharmacy PharmEasy bagged $216.2 Mn as part of its rights issue at a 90% valuation cut compared to its peak valuation of $5.6 Bn in October 2021. This was the lone mega deal for the week as well as the biggest cheque secured by a startup.
• Buoyed by PharmEasy’s mega funding, healthtech knocked off fintech to become the most funded sector this week. Healthtech startups raised $236.2 Mn across three deals this week. 
• Ecommerce maintained its streak of securing the most number of deals. Startups in the space netted $8.2 Mn across five deals this week. 
• Z21 Ventures and JITO Incubation and Innovation Foundation (JIIF) were the most active investors for the week, backing two startups apiece.
• Despite the positive upturn in the funding trends overall, seed funding dropped significantly this week. Startups at this stage were able to bag only $12.3 Mn this week, down 64% from last week’s $33.9 Mn.

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• Momspresso founders Vishal Gupta and Prashant Sinha’s new venture Pravis has picked up a stake in adtech gaming platform StreamO. The growth marketing firm will leverage StreamO’s 300 Mn subscribers to target GenZ communities.
• Non-banking finance company (NBFC) UGRO Capital has initiated the acquisition process of  lending tech startup MyShubhLife in a mix of equity (64%) and cash (36%) at an enterprise value of INR 45 Cr.
• SaaS major Freshworks announced the acquisition of Delaware Corporation’s Device42 for $230 Mn. The purchase price would be paid in the form of $215 Mn of cash and an equity rollover of $15 Mn. 
• Chennai-based SaaS metering and pricing platform Togai is in the process of getting acquired by California-based Zuora. The subscription management software company is looking to enhance its monetisation with the Togai’s acquisition
• PB Fintech, the parent company of insurtech platform Policybazaar, is set to acquire 100% stake in UAE-based Genesis Group. It will also be divesting stakes in two subsidiaries, Visit Health Private Limited and Visit Internet Services Private Limited 

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• BharatPe’s ex-COO Druv Dhanraj Bahl has rolled out his maiden venture capital (VC) fund, Eternal Capital, with a target corpus of $14.3 Mn. The fund is looking to back 40 early stage startups over the next three years.
• Venture debt firm Stride Ventures announced the final closure of its Stride Ventures India Fund III at $165 Mn. The firm will look to back startups across consumer brands, financial services and cleantech sectors
• VC firm IvyCap Ventures marked the final close of its third fund at $251 Mn. The fund will invest in 25 startups with an average ticket size of INR 30-50 Cr. 
• Tribe Capital is looking to invest $75 Mn in Shiprocket through its newly-launched special purpose vehicle (SPV). The transaction is expected to be completed in a few weeks. 
• Digital consulting company Brillio is looking to expand its India footprint with an investment of $240 Mn over the next five years.
• Investment firm Oister Global has floated an INR 440 Cr fund, Oister India Pinnacle Fund (OIPF), to fuel emerging technology-led innovations and various sunrise sectors in the country. 
• Thyrocare founder Arokiaswamy Velumani has joined hands with Young Entrepreneurs Association (YEA) and Magnifiq Capital Trust to invest up to INR 50 Cr in Indian startups. 
• Healthtech unicorn Innovaccer is in talks with health major Kaiser Permanente to raise a funding in the range of $200 Mn-$250 Mn in a mix of primary and secondary funding. 
• Anthill Ventures is looking to launch a hybrid fund targeting consumer experiences, wellness and entertainment startups. It will raise $100 Mn for a hybrid private credit and equity fund.
• UGRO Capital’s board approved raising INR 1,332.66 Cr through compulsorily convertible debentures (CCDs) and warrants. 
• Gold loan startup Rupeek has initiated funding discussions with Claypond Capital and Axis Bank. The startup is looking to raise an undisclosed amount of funding at a substantially reduced valuation of $200-$250 Mn from its 2022 valuation of $600 Mn. 
• Private equity (PE) firm ChrysCapital closed its $700 Mn ‘Continuation Fund’. The fund was anchored by US-based HarbourVest Partners and European funds LGT Capital Partners and Pantheon Ventures.

The post From PharmEasy To Portea — Indian Startups Raised $316 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After two weeks of decent investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem, funding remained muted between April 22 and 27. During the week, startups cumulatively raised $172.6 Mn across 21 deals, down 33% from last week’s $260.1 Mn secured across 31 deals. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [April 22 – April 27]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• IPO-bound non-banking lender Northern Arc secured $80 Mn from International Finance Corporation (IFC) in equal halves of equity and debt components on April 25, marking the largest fundraise of the week.
• Buoyed by Northern Arc’s funding, the fintech sector maintained its dominance over funding trends at a sectoral level. Startups in the space snagged $88.5 Mn via 3 deals, up 18% from last week’s $74.8 Mn secured across 5 deals. 
• Ecommerce topped the highest deal chart this week, with startups in the sector raising $29.8 Mn across 5 deals. 
• The week also saw Blue Ashva Capital, Titan Capital, Venture Catalysts, and  Cred’s Kunal Shah clinching the active investors tag with each backing two startups. 
• Seed funding continued its ascent with early stage startups securing $33.9 Mn this week. This is a 29% surge from last week’s $26.2 Mn. 

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• After receiving a go-ahead from its shareholders for a mega $1.2 Bn initial public offering (IPO) earlier this week, the foodtech major took the confidential route to file its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Thursday (April 26). 
• Albeit receiving a go-ahead from the SEBI for a $500 Mn IPO last month, kids-focussed omnichannel retailer Firstcry is now planning to pause its public market plans. The startup will now refile the DRHP with updated financial numbers and key performance indicators from the quarter ended December 2023.
• Peak XV-backed coworking space provider Awfis and B2B travel portal Travel Boutique Online or TBO Tek – have received a go-ahead for their respective IPOs from the exchanges regulator. 

Other Major Developments Of The Week

• Capria Ventures announced the final close of its India Opportunity Fund at INR 153 Cr. This follows Capria’s full-cash exit from HR tech platform Awign, with a return of more than 50%. With this, Japanese Mynavi Corporation has picked up a majority stake in Awign.
• Global investment firm Lighthouse Canton launched a new fund, LC GenInnov Global Innovation Fund, to focus on investments in global GenAI companies.
• After a six-year-long stint, Peak XV Partner’s managing director Piyush Gupta is set to part ways with the VC by the end of April. Moving further, he is in the process of setting up a secondary-focused fund. 
• Australia’s Macquarie Group’s investment arm, Macquarie Asset Management, is looking to invest $1.5 Bn into India’s EV space via its recently unveiled platform Vertelo.
• EV maker Ather Energy is eyeing a $90 Mn funding round via a combination of primary and secondary share sales at a unicorn valuation. Meanwhile, existing investor Flipkart’s Sachin Bansal has divested some of his stake to Zerodha’s Nikhil Kamath. 
• Saudi Aramco’s venture capital arm is building a team in India to back early-stage startups in the country. Further, Aramco’s subsidiary Prosperity7 Ventures is in discussions to rope in a leader for its India operations.
• Investment firm Kedaara Capital has marked the final close of its fourth fund, Kedaara IV, at $1.7 Bn. With this, it has raised the country’s largest PE Fund, surpassing Chrys Cap’s $1.3 Bn Fund IX raised in 2023.
• Singapore-based investment firm Temasek and US-based Fidelity are in final discussions to invest around $200 Mn in Lenskart through a secondary share sale at a valuation of $5 Bn. 
• Former BharatPe CEO Suhail Sameer-backed OTP Ventures is planning to mark the first close of its debut fund at INR 400 Cr by June. The fund will be investing in consumer, consumer tech and fintech startups.
• VC fund Norwest Venture Partners announced the close of its 17th fund, NVP 17, at $3 Bn. With the fund, it will invest in enterprise tech, consumer and healthcare startups in three focus markets – India, Israel, and the US.
• Coworking space provider WeWork Inc is in talks to sell its remaining 27% stake in its Indian unit, WeWork India, via an INR 1,200 Cr secondary transaction to Enam group’s family office, investment fund A91 Partners, and CaratLane founder Mithun Sacheti.

The post From Northern Arc To Dhruva Aerospace — Indian Startups Raised $172 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After an uptick in the investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem, funding saw a marginal dip in the third week of April. Between April 15 and 20, startups cumulatively raised $260.1 Mn across 31 deals, a 9% drop from $286.3 Mn secured across 16 deals in the preceding week.

Note: This week’s funding galore also includes deals from the preceding week

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [April 8 – April 20]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• While we saw a mega deal last week, with iBUS’ securing $200 Mn funding from NIIF, there were no mega deals this week. 
• Cleantech startup GPS Renewables secured a $50 Mn debt round on April 16, marking the largest fundraise of the week.
• At a sectoral level, fintech hogged the limelight this week, as startups in the space cumulatively raised $74.8 Mn across 5 deals. Total funding for fintech startups stood at $16 Mn last week across two deals.
• Last week’s leader enterprisetech slipped to the fifth spot with startup’s cumulatively raising $14.95 Mn. However, the sector saw the highest number of six deals this week. 
• VC firms Chiratae Ventures, Rebright Partners, Blume Ventures and Z3Partners were the most active investors this week, backing two startups each. 
• Seed funding slightly picked up this week to $26.2 Mn, a 17% increase from $21.6 Mn from last week. 

Startup Acquisitions From Last Two Weeks

• Marking its fourth acquisition in the gaming space after Calling Station, Spartan Poker and BatBall11, OneVerse Gaming bought online poker platform PokerSaint. 
• News aggregator DailyHunt’s parent VerSe Innovation acquired digital newsstand platform Magzter. With the acquisition, VerSe launched DailyHunt Premium, a subscription-based service that will grant users access to premium content.
• Aurionpro Solutions is set to acquire a 67% stake in banking and insurance focused PaaS startup Arya.ai in a deal valued at $16.5 Mn.
• Last week on April 12, enterprise tech startup Postman acquired SaaS platform Orbit for an undisclosed amount. 
• On April 9, Cloud kitchen startup Ghost Kitchens India announced the acquisition of The Shy Tiger in an all-cash deal.
• Manav Garg led Eka was acquired by US-based private equity firm Symphony Technology Group (STG) on April 8. The Bengaluru-based CTRM software company was merged with STG owned UK based Quor Group.

Startup Fund Launches Of This Week

• Venture capital (VC) firms Caret Capital and Ev2 Ventures joined forces to launch Caret Capital Fund II, a $50 Mn India-focussed fund.
• Angel Network BizDateUp launched an INR 200 Cr Category I Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) to invest in technology startups.
• Revenue-based financing startup Klub joined hands with U GRO Capital to disburse INR 150 Cr credit to digital small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across different growth stages.
• Zerodha’s Nikhil Kamath launched ‘WTFund’, a new grant initiative for young entrepreneurs below the age of 25. The fund will back up to 40 startup founders with a non-dilutive grant of INR 20 Lakh each. 

Other Major Developments From The Last Two Weeks

• With its sights set on becoming India’s 116th unicorn, proptech startup Square Yards is in talks with investors to raise $120 Mn at a valuation of over $1 Bn, sources told Inc42.  
• Affiliate marketing startup Flickstree is in talks with new and existing investors to raise $10 Mn-$12 Mn in its Series B round. It plans to use fresh funds to expand its presence beyond India.
• Ecommerce unicorn Meesho is looking to raise $500-$650 Mn from investors at a valuation of $3.9 Bn. This will potentially peg the startup 20% lower than its last reported valuation of $4.9 Bn.
• Agritech startup Ninjacart invested in Philippines-based agri-fisheries startup Mayani. The fresh investment was made through its VC arm Ninja Ventures as a part of its global expansion plans. 
• CaratLane founder Mithun Sacheti and Flipkart cofounder Binny Bansal joined early-stage fund Xeed Ventures as anchor limited partners (LPs).
• IIM Ahmedabad’s startup incubator has announced its support for 14 startups from Indore in its first Cohort of the Indore Smart City Accelerator programme.
• Electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Bounce Infinity is in talks with new as well as existing investors Peak XV Partners, Accel Partners, and Falcon Edge to raise a funding round of up to $40 Mn within the next three months.
• Lightspeed Venture Partners saw two top level exits last week with India arm’s partner Abhishek Nag and partner from US fund Vaibhav Agrawal stepping down.
• Private equity (PE) firm Singularity Growth announced on April 10 that it has invested INR 400 Cr in Lohum, Akshayakalpa, and three others from its second fund – Singularity Growth Opportunities Fund II.
• Early last week, investment firm Filter Capital announced the final close of its maiden CAT II AIF growth-stage fund – Filter Capital India Fund I – at INR 800 Cr (close to $100 Mn).

The post From GPS Renewables To RING — Indian Startups Raised $260 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Funding momentum across the Indian startup ecosystem dropped in the first week of April after a brief uptick. Between April 1 and 6, startups cumulatively raised $151.6 Mn, a 38% decline from last week’s $243 Mn.

However, there was a rise in the number of deals with 22 startups raising funding compared to 17 in the preceding week.

Funding Galore Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Apr 1 – Apr 6]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• IPO-bound Ola Electric bagged the biggest cheque this week, securing $50 Mn in debt funding from EvolutionX Debt Capital via non-convertible debentures (NCDs).
• Maintaining its lead from last week, enterprisetech sector bagged the most funding of $52.3 Mn through 8 deals.
• Seed-stage startup funding picked up steam this week with startups netting $8.1  Mn, up 270% from last week’s $3 Mn. 

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• SaaS cybersecurity startup TAC Infosec shares opened at INR 290 on the NSE’s small and medium enterprises platform (NSE SME), a 173.6% premium on the issue price of INR 106.
• Fintech SaaS company Trust Fintech shares opened at INR 143.25 on NSE SME, a 42% premium on its issue price of INR 101 per share. 

Startup Acquisitions This Week

• In an acquisition within Amazon India’s sellers space, Clicktech acquired Appario, one of the largest seller entities on the e-commerce marketplace.
• Business services provider Quess Corp Limited has fully acquired gig economy platform Taskmo for an undisclosed amount. Both Taskmo founders – Prashant Janadri and Naveen Ram – will exit once the acquisition by Quess is completed.

Startup Fund Launches Of This Week

• VC firm Centre Court Capital announced its maiden INR 350 Cr fund ($42 Mn) focussed on early stage startups in the sports and gaming space. It has already received commitments to the tune of INR 200 Cr from investors and top athletes. 
• Indian Navy Veteran Navneet Kaushik has rolled out Jamwant Venture Fund, an angel fund backed by SKI Capital, a SEBI-registered AIF, RTA & Category1 Merchant Bank. It will primarily look into investing in early-stage tech startups in the defence space

Other Major Developments From This Week

• Quick commerce unicorn Zepto has initiated discussions with a clutch of global investors to raise $300 Mn at a valuation range of $2.5-$3 Bn. It was last valued at $1.4 Bn in 2023.
• Fintech unicorn Navi is in talks with investors to raise $200-$400 Mn in funding at a valuation of $2 Bn. This will be the Flipkart cofounder Sachin Bansal-led startup’s maiden external fundraise.
• Ride-hailing startup Rapido is eyeing a mega $100 Mn fundraise from existing investor WestBridge Capital and others at a valuation to $900 Mn. It has reportedly received commitments of around $70 Mn and is currently approaching Indian family offices for the rest. 
• Beauty ecommerce marketplace Purplle is currently in initial discussions with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) for a $100 Mn investment. The investment is expected to come through secondary transactions, allowing some early investors to exit. 

The post From Ola Electric To Namdev Finvest — Indian Startups Raised $151 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investments in Indian startups picked up pace during the week between March 23 and March 30, as volatility continued in the startup investment landscape. This week, Indian startups cumulatively raised $243.3 Mn from 17 deals, a 19% increase from $204.9 Mn raised last week. The number of deals stood at 14 in the previous week.. 

This week saw one mega funding deal, with education-focussed non-banking financial company (NBFC) Avanse Financial Services securing a primary capital infusion of $120 Mn in a round led by Abu Dhabi-based investment firm Mubadala Investment Company. 

Funding Galore Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Mar 23- Mar 30]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Avanse Financial bagged the biggest cheque this week.
• Boosted by Avanse Financial’s mega funding deal, the fintech sector emerged as an investor favourite this week. The space saw a cumulative investment of $151.8 Mn across four deals.
• Enterprisetech saw the maximum number of funding deals this week, with startups operating in the space bagging $11.2 Mn via five deals.
• Seed stage startup funding plummeted 84% to $3 Mn this week from last week’s $19.25 Mn. 
• Blume Ventures emerged as the most active investor this week  investing in SUBKO Coffee Roasters and SuperK.

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• SaaS cybersecurity startup TAC Infosec’s initial public offering (IPO) opened on the exchanges on March 27 and will close on April 2. The IPO comprises a fresh issue of 28.29 Cr equity shares at a price band of INR 100-106. On the back of strong demand from retail investors, the startup’s IPO was oversubscribed 23.42X at the end of the second day of subscription on Thursday (March 28).
• The IPO of fintech SaaS company Trust Fintech closed on March 28 with 101X subscription on the back of huge demand from retail investors and non-institutional investors. The IPO comprised a fresh issue of 62.82 Lakh equity share at price band of INR 95-INR 101 per share, with a lot size of 1,200 equity shares.

Other Major Developments From This Week

• Early stage investor Chiratae Ventures reportedly sold its stake in multiple startups, including Lenskart, Bizongo and Rentomojo, to private equity firm Madison India Capital for $70 Mn in a bulk secondary deal. 
• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) cleared subscription to CCPS class B shares of API Holdings, the parent of PharmEasy, by the family office of Manipal Group chairman Ranjan Pai and 360 ONE (formerly IIFL). Pai will now emerge as one of the biggest investors in PharmEasy with an estimated stake of more than 12%.
• Infibeam Avenues’ UAE subsidiary, Avenues World FZ-LLC, is looking to raise $25 Mn in a pre-IPO round from a select group of investors, as it gears up for a listing in the UAE capital market.
• Omnichannel jewellery startup BlueStone is eyeing raising $16.5 Mn in a mix of debt and equity. The startup’s board recently passed two separate resolutions to raise INR 100 Cr debt and an equity funding of INR 37.7 Cr by allotting Series G compulsory convertible cumulative preference shares (CCPS) to its investors.
• Global investment firm L Catterton’s Asia arm and former Hindustan Unilever (HUL) executive Sanjiv Mehta have forged a joint venture agreement to float a new India-focussed investment vehicle. Mehta will helm the formation of the joint venture focused on investing in Indian consumer-facing companies.

The post From Avanse Financial Services To ShareChat — Indian Startups Raised $243 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem saw a marginal dip in the third week of March after an uptick. Between March 18 and 23, startups cumulatively raised funding of $204.84 Mn across 14 deals, a 10% drop from $226.2 Mn across 18 deals in the preceding week. 

The week also saw audio entertainment platform Pocket FM raising $103 Mn in its Series D funding round from Lightspeed and Stepstone Group. Besides, the company is also in talks with Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) for a fresh fundraise which will likely value it at around $1.2 Bn.

Funding Galore Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Mar 18- Mar 23]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Pocket FM logged the largest-ticket transaction this week.
• Media and entertainment became the most funded sector this week, catapulted by Pocket FM’s $103 Mn funding. To be sure, the space saw a cumulative investment of $108.25 Mn across two deals. 
• Ecommerce saw a maximum number of funding deals this week, with startups operating in the space bagging $54.14 Mn via four deals.
• Early stage startups raised $19.25 Mn this week largely driven by seed funding rounds. This is a 326% increase from last week’s $5.9 Mn.
• Nexus Venture Partners emerged as the most active investor this week, writing cheques for Liquidnitro Games and Ultrahuman.

Startup IPO Updates

• The initial public offering (IPO) of SaaS cybersecurity startup TAC Infosec, also known as TAC Security, will kick off on March 27. The startup is looking to raise $3.5 Mn from its public debut.
• Fintech SaaS company Trust Fintech Limited’s IPO is set to open on March 26. The company plans to net INR 63.45 Cr from the public offering.

Other Major Developments From The Indian Startup Ecosystem

• US-based venture capital (VC) firm Alphatron Capital (formerly SMK Ventures) closed its maiden fund at $30 Mn. The fund will majorly invest on startups across SaaS, fintech, healthtech, AI/ML, digital content and D2C sectors.
• Fintech-focused VC Cedar Capital has marked the first close of its $30 Mn FinTech Venture Capital fund. It aims to back around 15 early stage startups in the fintech space.
• VC firm B Capital has announced the close of its ‘Opportunities Fund II’ at $750 Mn. The fund received commitments from both existing and new investors, including private and public pension funds and family offices, among others.
• Edtech startup Toprankers has acquired the judiciary arm of Lucknow-based Coach Up IAS. However, the startup did not disclose the financial terms of the deal.
• Investment fund Malabar Investments is seeking a stake in SUGAR Cosmetics via secondary deal worth $9 Mn- $12 Mn.
• The Good Glamm Group is in final stages of discussion to close a $70 Mn funding round as it gears up to go public next year, sources told Inc42. 
• After a 13-year stint, Nexus Venture Partners’ Managing Director Sameer Brij Verma has stepped down to float his own investment fund majorly focussed on early stage startups. 
• Delhi NCR-based used car marketplace, Spinny, is expanding its ESOP pool by granting an additional 24 Mn options.

The post From Pocket FM to Ultrahuman — Indian Startups Raised $205 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Startup funding activity gained ground in the second week of March after a slight dip. Between March 11 and 16, startups cumulatively raised funding of $226.2 Mn across 18 deals, a 50% increase from $150.1 Mn across 17 deals in the previous week.

The week also saw India minting its 114th Unicorn as fintech SaaS startup Perfios raked in $80 Mn cheque from Teachers’ Venture Growth at a valuation of over $1 Bn.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Mar 11 – Mar 16]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Perfios’ $80 Mn fundraise was the largest round of the week.
• Supported by Perfios’ funding, the fintech sector emerged as the most funded sector, propelling startups to raise a total of $91.5 Mn. The sector also received the highest number of 4 deals. 
• Seed funding regained its pace with startups securing $5.9 Mn, a 655% jump from last week’s $904k. 
• Venture Catalysts emerged as the most active investor this week, investing in Fiona Diamonds and Attron Automotive.

Mergers and Acquisitions This Week

• Expanding its foothold in the Indian gaming space, OneVerse Gaming bought online poker platform Calling Station and fantasy sports platform BatBall11 earlier this week. 
• FMCG BIA Brands has bought beauty brand Asa Beauty to sharpen its beauty and personal care (BPC) playbook.

Other Major Developments

• The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has given its nod to the merger of fintech unicorn slice with North East Small Finance Bank.
• Bengaluru-based on-demand driver aggregator DriveU told Inc42 that is seeks a funding of around $10 Mn in its Series B round.
• Omnichannel jewellery startup BlueStone is eyeing to acquire a $9 Mn debt from VC firm Trifecta Capital. To raise the capital, the startup’s board passed a resolution to allot ‘Series X1 Debentures’ to Trifecta Venture Debt Fund-III last month.
• A91 Partners is in the final stage to raise its largest ever fund to date at $700-750 Mn. The investment firm is eyeing the fund launch in a few months.
• Dealing with unsustainable business models, two fashion startups Virgio and Fashinza have initiated a process to return most of the proceeds they had raised from marquee investors like Prosus Ventures and Accel.
• VC firm Peak XV Partners announced its plans to launch an evergreen perpetual fund called Peak XV Anchor Fund to enable the firm’s leadership to invest in future funds as well as partner with other fund managers. 
• Stock broking startup Zerodha is in preliminary discussions with multiple investors to secure a $100 Mn investment for its asset management company (AMC), Zerodha Fund House. However, Zerodha Fund House, in a statement, told Inc42 that it is currently not engaged in any conversations to raise external funding.
• 8i Ventures floated a seed funding programme, Origami, to support early-stage founders. Select startups will be offered an initial funding ranging between $250K and $2 Mn. 
• Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) secured $24.5 Mn from UN’s Green Climate Fund (GCF) for its $120 Mn climate focussed fund Avaana Sustainability Fund (ASF).
• Prath Ventures has raised $14.5 Mn from SIDBI Funds of Funds, several other angel investors and family offices, marking the second close of its INR 225 Cr fund.
• Eyeing global expansion, gaming major Nazara has set aside $100 Mn for mergers and acquisitions over the next two years.
• Alternative credit platform BlackSoil NBFC raised an equity of $12 Mn (INR 100 Cr) from its existing Indian investors and family offices through a rights issue.

The post From Perfios To Nanonets — Indian Startups Raised $226 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem slipped again in the first week of March after a brief uptick. Between March 4 and 9, startups cumulatively raised over $150.1 Mn across 17 deals, a 254% decline from $381.4 Mn secured across 27 deals in the previous week.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Mar 4 – Mar 9]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

– This week, D2C startup Ayurveda Experience and online fraud detection startup IDfy tied for the top funding, both securing $27 Mn. While IDfy raised Series E funding from Elev8, Ayurveda raked in capital as a part of its Series C round led by Jungle Ventures.

– Fuelled by Ayurveda Experience’s funding, ecommerce emerged as the most funded sector this week.

– The sector also reported the maximum number of six deals. 

– However, the enterprisetech sector slipped to the second position, bagging a total of four deals.Enterprisetech startups like IDfy managed to secure $53.7 Mn this week. 

– Total seed funding in the week also plummeted to $904.2K, a 492% dip from the $4.45 Mn  secured by seed stage startups last week.

Fund Launches This Week

– Revenue-based financing platform GetVantage rolled out The Rise-Up fund, with an initial corpus of INR 100 Cr (around $12 Mn). The fund will be deployed within the next one year to support over 400 women-led businesses. 

– VC firm Colossa Ventures marked the first close of its maiden women-focused fund at INR 100 Cr ($12 Mn). With a target corpus of INR 500 Cr, the fund will be investing in women-led startups across sectors like healthcare, healthtech, fintech, climate and cleantech, deeptech and consumer.

– Climate tech venture studio NOW announced a $2 Mn fund to back early stage Indian deeptech and climate tech startups. NOW will invest  $250K to $500K in and “co-build” three to four startups in the next 12-18 months. 

Other Major Developments From This Week 

–  Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) had committed INR 9,500 Cr in its Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS). SIDBI’s chairman S Ramann said that this commitment has led to over 100 alternate investment funds (AIFs) raising more than INR 56,000 Cr. The fund was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2016 with an approved corpus of INR 10,000 Cr for contribution to various AIFs registered with SEBI.

–  With plans to launch its IPO in the second half of FY25, logistics unicorn BlackBuck is looking to raise as much as $300 Mn. The startup has initiated the preparations of its DRHP, which it will likely file with the full FY24 financial numbers.

– Flipkart’s marketplace arm, Flipkart Internet, received a cash infusion, raising about INR 924 Cr ($111 Mn) in two parts from its related entities based in Singapore. The company approved the two resolutions to infuse capital into it on December 20 and 22 last year.

–  Peak XV Partners, Tiger Global, and other investors are eyeing a stake in ecommerce unicorn Meesho via a secondary transaction. The early investors of the startups are likely to offload shares worth around $200 Mn, which is expected to value the deal between $3.5 Bn and $3.9 Bn based on the final terms.

–  US-based asset management firm Baron Capital Group has increased the fair value of its stake in IPO-bound Swiggy. This has bumped up the startup’s valuation to $12.16 Bn, an over 13% raise from its valuation of $10.7 Bn during the last fundraise in 2022.

–  IT giant HCL Group has acquired a minority stake in education software company Educational Initiatives (Ei) for $20 Mn. The group bought Mumbai-based private equity firm Gaja Capital’s stake in Ei through a secondary stake sale.

The post From Ayurveda Experience To Hunch — Indian Startups Raised $150 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After a slight dip, funding momentum across the Indian startup ecosystem shot back in the last week of February. Between February 26 and March 2, startups collectively raised $381.4 Mn across 27 deals, a 345% rise from $110.4 Mn secured across 15 deals in the previous week.

The week also saw a mega deal as logistics startup Shadowfax bagged $100 Mn in Series E funding round led by TPG NewQuest. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Feb 26 – Mar 2]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Logistics services startup Shadowfax secured $100 Mn as part of its Series E round led by TPG NewQuest.
• Fuelled by Capillary Technologies’ secondary funding round, enterprisetech emerged as the most funded sector, bagging $104 Mn across six deals. 
• The ecommerce sector reported a maximum of seven deals this week, bagging $55.4 Mn in funding.
• This week, seed funding jumped to $4.45 Mn across five deals, up from $4.1 Mn from last week.
• SIDBI emerged as the most active investor this week, investing in NewSpace Research & Technologies and Digantara.

Other Major Developments From This Week

• Market regulator SEBI has given a go ahead to Digital Insurance for its much-awaited IPO  plans on March 1. The IPO would comprise a fresh issue worth INR 1,250 Cr and an OFS component of 10.94 Cr equity shares.
• After an intense faceoff with its investors last week, BYJU’S finally breathed a sigh of relief as the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) bench reserved its judgement on a petition filed by a group of its investors to put a stay on edtech major’s ongoing $200 Mn rights issue. The bench asked the startup to keep the proceeds from its rights issue in a separate escrow account and consider extension of the closure of the rights issue. The company was expected to close its rights issue on February 28. 
• At a valuation of $8.5 Bn, Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), Viacom 18 Media Private Limited (Viacom18) and The Walt Disney Company have signed binding agreements to set up a joint venture (JV) on February 28. The resultant entity will be controlled by RIL.
• In a bid to raise the biggest private equity fund in India, Kedaara Capital will be raising $1.7 Bn. Of this, 80% will be raised from existing investors while the remaining will come from new backers.
• Asset management firm Rockstud Capital has marked the first close of its second alternative investment fund (AIF) at $8.2 Mn. The target corpus of Rockstud Capital Investment Fund II is $36 Mn. 
• Venture capital firm Peak XV announced the third cohort of its women entrepreneurs-focussed Spark programme on February 26. 14 startups and 16 female founders have been selected under the initiative.
• Social media platform Koo is likely to get taken over by Dailyhunt as talks of the acquisition are reportedly in advanced stage. The deal includes a share-swap agreement and might be concluded within the upcoming weeks.
• Healthcare-focused fintech startup QubeHealth’s founder Chris George told Inc42 that the startup is looking to raise between $6-$9 Mn as a part of its Series A funding round. 
• Fintech company Infibeam Avenues acquired a 20% stake in US-based enterprise app and AI development company XDuce for $10 Mn on February 25. The fintech company will leverage XDuce’s tech stack to bolster the growth of Infibeam’s payment gateway brand, CCAvenue, in the US.

The post From Shadowfax To Capillary Technologies — Indian Startups Raised $381 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Investment activity continues to remain subdued in the Indian startup ecosystem as funding plunged further in the third week of the ongoing month. Between February 19 and 24, startups collectively raised $110.4 Mn across 15 deals, a 12% dip from $125 Mn secured across 18 deals in the previous week. 

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Feb 19 – Feb 24]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• After securing $25 Mn from Edelweiss Discovery Fund Series, Chiratae and Magnetic in its Series D funding round, online furniture rental startup Rentomojo netted the largest funding of the week. 
• Fuelled by two EV startups Yulu and Pure EV securing $19.25 Mn and $8 Mn, respectively, this week, cleantech emerged as the most funded sector with $35.9 Mn from three deals
• Both cleantech and fintech bagged the maximum number of deals this week. To be sure, cleantech secured $35.9 Mn across three deals, while the fintech sector mopped up $11.2 Mn across three deals.
• Seed funding took a hit again, going down from last week’s $7.9 Mn to $4.1 Mn across five deals this week.

Fund Launches This Week

• Venture Catalysts and Neovon-backed Spyre PropTech Venture Fund launched its maiden fund worth INR 400 Cr. The VC fund looks to back at least 30 startups, with an average ticket size of INR 2-8 Cr in early stage and INR 15-40 Cr for growth stage Series A and B rounds.
• Equirus marked the first close of its maiden early stage venture capital fund. The investment banking services company seeks to raise at least $25 Mn with the fund and will back SaaS, deeptech and fintech sectors majorly,  with a focus on B2B space. 
• Aroa Venture Partners launched a new fund ‘Aroa Opportunities Fund‘ with a $50 Mn corpus. The firm plans to deploy cheques of INR 4 Cr to INR 40 Cr across 20-25 startups from the new fund.

Other Major Developments From This Week 

• National Investment and Infrastructure Fund Limited (NIIF) committed $25 Mn to the second fund of Amicus Capital Partners. This adds to Amicus’ target corpus of $200 Mn for the fund. 
• Avanse Financial Services has received a commitment of $132.7 Mn in primary capital from Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala Investment Co, Kotak Pre-IPO Opportunities Fund and Avendus Future Leaders Fund. The deal will value the NBFC to INR 8,000 Cr.
• The state government of Bihar has roped in Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) to administer the INR 50 Cr earmarked under the Bihar Startup Scale-up Financing Fund (BSSFF).
• AR toys and games maker PlayShifu will be raising $6 Mn in its Series C funding round led by Inflexor Ventures. Several family offices are also expected to join the startup’s cap table, sources told Inc42.
• NIIF is likely to acquire a majority stake in the Bengaluru-based digital infrastructure provider iBus for $200 Mn. The investment will come from its Master Fund.
• Fintech SaaS startup Signzy acquired fraud risk management solutions provider Difenz in a cash and equity deal, which valued the latter at $5 Mn. The acquisition is Signzy’s bid to strengthen its compliance solution offerings with AI.
• Embattled edtech giant BYJU’S rights issue to raise $200 Mn at a valuation cut of 99% got fully subscribed ahead of its crucial extraordinary general meeting (EGM). The company’s founder and CEO Byju Raveendran confirmed the development in a shareholder letter and will also be putting in a $45-$46 Mn in the rights issue himself. 
• Walmart-backed ecommerce major Flipkart is exploring acquisition of the cash-starved hyperlocal delivery startup Dunzo. However, Dunzo’s complex ownership structure is creating hurdles for the deal to come to fruition.
• Construction startup Infra.Market is looking to raise a debt of $60 Mn soon in multiple tranches.

The post From Rentmojo To Yulu – Indian Startups Raised $110 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After a massive uptick in investment activity, the Indian startup ecosystem entered the slow funding lane in the second week of the ongoing month. Between February 12 and 19, startups collectively raised $125 Mn across 18 deals, which is a 25.5% dip from $168 Mn raised by 25 startups in the previous week.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Feb 12 – Feb 17]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Bengaluru-based B2B seafood startup bagged $25 Mn in funding from British International Investment and Nekkanti Seafoods, making the biggest funding round of this week.
• Fuelled by Captain Fresh’s funding, ecommerce emerged as the most funded sector with $58.1 Mn and a maximum of seven deals this week.
• This week, seed funding plummeted to $7.9 Mn across 4 deals, from $17.7 Mn across nine deals last week. 
• Fireside Ventures emerged as the busiest investor this week as it participated in three deals. 

Updates On Indian Startup IPOs

• Fintech SaaS company Trust Fintech Limited had filed its Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP) with NSE Emerge to raise funds via an initial public offering (IPO).
• ixigo’s parent Le Travenues Technology Ltd refiled its DRHP to raise INR 120 Cr via fresh issue of shares.
• OTT streaming platform Ullu Digital has filed its DRHP with the  BSE SME for an IPO to raise around INR 130 Cr.

Other Major Developments From This Week

• Navi Finserv is planning to raise up to INR 600 Cr via issuance of Non-Convertible Debentures (NCDs) to fuel its business growth.
• Home interior startup HomeLane to acquire DesignCafe in a stock-swap deal.
• Hyderabad Angels launched its maiden venture capital fund at INR 150 Cr to invest in early stage startups.
• Endiya Partners is set to launch its third fund for a corpus ranging between INR 800 Cr and INR 1,000 Cr ($100-$125 Mn).
• Nazara’s NODWIN Gaming to acquire Ninja Global FZCO (Ninja), to foray into Turkey and the Middle East region
• Africa’s mobility fintech startup Moove raised $10 Mn (about INR 83 Cr) in debt from Stride Ventures to expand its presence in the Indian market.
• InCred Group’s InCred Alternatives Investments launched its maiden Category II AIF, with a target corpus of INR 500 Cr ($60 Mn+).
• PedalStart, a startup accelerator launched Series-2 fund with $250K funding to help early stage startups

The post From Captain Fresh To Amber — Indian Startups Raised $125 Mn This Week appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After a slight dip, investment activity across the Indian startup ecosystem shot back in the  post budget week. From February 5 to 10, startups collectively raised $168 Mn in funding across 25 deals, marking a 250% uptick as compared to $48 Mn raised across eight deals in the previous week.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Feb 5 – Feb 9]