Former Flipkart Exec Anil Goteti’s Scapia Raises $9 Mn In Seed Funding

Traveltech startup Scapia has raised $9 Mn in a seed round led by Matrix Partners India. The round also saw participation from Tanglin Venture Partners, Binny Bansal’s 3 STATE Ventures and angel investors Keki Mistry, CEO of HDFC Ltd.

The startup will utilise the funds to scale operations and invest in technological capabilities.

Scapia was founded by Anil Goteti in 2022, former senior vice president of Flipkart. The startup was in stealth mode over the last year.

Scapia recently launched its co-branded credit card in partnership with Federal Bank. The startup turns a customer’s everyday expense into travel rewards with its co-branded card. The product offers various rewards including a zero-forex markup, unlimited domestic lounge access, among others.

The co-branded card operates on the visa network and offers a 10% reward on every transaction, minting these into Scapia coins.

“Millennials, with their considerable interest in travel, are looking for a primary card that can effectively reward them with travel benefits and perks. In addition, they want a delightful app with transparency and service that they can trust. We see a massive opportunity for Scapia – less than 5% of the population currently have credit cards and India is projected to have 200 Mn credit cards in circulation by 2030,” Goteti said in a statement.

This is not the first entrepreneurial stint of Goteti. He cofounded digital solutions startup Protonn along with Mausam Bhatt. However, Protonn had to shut down its business in less than a year after raising $9 Mn in seed funding as it was unable to find the right product-market fit and the founders didn’t agree to pivot the business.

Goteti’s latest venture Scapia competes with the likes of fintech firms such as Niyo, OneCard and Uni.

After months of funding decline, in May 2023, the funding raised by the startup ecosystem in India increased 15% month-on-month (MoM) to $1 Bn. In comparison, Indian startups had raised $900 Mn in the month of April.

As per Inc42 data, the deal count also surged 31% to 80 in May 2023 from 61 in April 2023.

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