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From Ather To Nazara — Indian Startups Raised $257 Mn This Week

From Ather To Nazara — Indian Startups Raised $257 Mn This Week
SUMMARY

The Indian startup ecosystem secured $257 Mn across 18 funding deals in the first week of September

Ather Energy raised $108 Mn from Hero MotorCorp and GIC, making it the biggest fundraise of the week

Delhi NCR-based omnichannel meat brand Good To Go acquired Chennai-based meat delivery startup TenderCuts in a distress sale

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The month of September began with a positive upswing in funding for Indian startups. Between September 4 and September 9, 2023, Indian startups collectively secured $257 Mn across 18 deals.

This week’s funding further marks a significant increase of 394% compared to $52 Mn raised by Indian startups in the previous week.

The week witnessed one mega deal, with Ather Energy bagging $108 Mn from Hero MotoCorp and GIC.

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

Date Name Sector Subsector Business Model Funding Round Size Funding Round Type Investors Lead Investor
6 Sept 2023 Ather Energy Cleantech Electric Vehicle B2C $108 Mn Hero MotoCorp, GIC
7 Sept 2023 Nazara Games Media & Entertainment Gaming B2B B2C $61.4 Mn Nithin Kamath, Nikhil Kamath, SBI Mutual Fund
5 Sept 2023 Pepperfry Ecommerce B2C Ecommerce B2C $23 Mn
5 Sept 2023 Captain Fresh Agritech Market Linkage B2B B2C $20 Mn Series C Extension SBI Investments, Evolvence Capital, Tiger Global, Accel Partners, Matrix Partners India, Prosus Ventures
8 Sept 2023 Brine Fi Fintech Investment Tech B2C $16.5 Mn Series A Pantera Capital, Elevation Capital, Starkware, Spartan Group, Goodwater Capital, Upsparks Ventures, Protofund Ventures Pantera Capital
5 Sept 2023 Atomicwork Enterpristech Horizontal SaaS B2B $11 Mn Seed Blume Ventures, Matrix Partners, Storm Ventures, Neon Fund Blume Ventures, Matrix Partners
5 Sept 2023 Flipspaces Consumer Services Hyperlocal Services B2B $4 Mn Pre-Series B Prashasta Seth Prashasta Seth
7 Sept 2023 altM Cleantech Biotech B2B $3.5 Mn Seed Omnivore, Theia Ventures, Thai Wah Ventures, Sanjiv Rangrass, Neha Mudaliar, Maninder Gulati, Mirik Gogri, Paula Mariwala Omnivore
5 Sept 2023 Cirkla Ecommerce B2B Ecommerce B2B $3 Mn Seed Matrix Partners India, Stellaris Venture Partners Matrix Partners India, Stellaris Venture Partners
5 Sept 2023 Manastu Deeptech Spacetech B2B $3 Mn Pre-Series A Capital 2B, BIG Capital, E2MC, Sanchi Connect, Wealthy via Ventures, Roots Ventures, Riceberg Ventures, Spectrum Impact Capital 2B, BIG Capital, E2MC
4 Sept 2023 LISSUN Healthtech Fitness & Wellness B2C $1.3 Mn Seed IPV, Rainmatter Capital, Ivy Cap Ventures, WFC, GrowX Ventures IPV, Rainmatter Capital
4 Sept 2023 MappIs KOGO Enterprisetech Horizontal SaaS B2B $1 Mn MapMyIndia
4 Sept 2023 Sploot Ecommerce D2C B2C $800K Seed Redstart Labs Redstart Labs
5 Sept 2023 Ellipsol Cleantech Solar Tech B2B B2C $301K Seed Capital A, Grand Anicut Fund Capital A
4 Sept 2023 PrintBrix Ecommerce B2B Ecommerce B2B Seed EvolveX
6 Sept 2023 Madmix Ecommerce D2C B2C Seed Prime Securities, Authum Investments, Team India Managers Prime Securities
4 Sept 2023 GoodGudi Ecommerce B2C Ecommerce B2C Seed AC Ventures, April Ventures, Capinity Partners, Kunal Shah, Aprameya Radhakrishna AC Ventures
8 Sept 2023 Aaritya Technologies Fintech Investment Tech B2C Seed Accel, Elevation Capital
Source: Inc42
*Part of a larger round
Note: Only disclosed funding rounds have been included

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

  • Bengaluru-based EV scooter manufacturing startup Ather Energy raised $108 Mn from Hero MotorCorp and GIC, making it the biggest fundraise of the week.
  • Fueled by Ather’s fundraise, the electric vehicle (cleantech) sector emerged as the most funded this week, securing $111 Mn across three deals.
  • Ecommerce reported the highest deal count, securing $26.8 Mn. Notably, one-third of all funding deals were in the ecommerce sector, accounting for six out of the total 18 deals reported this week.
  • After a lackluster performance in the past few weeks, the first week of September saw a marked resurgence in investor interest for seed funding. Over $20 Mn was raised across ten seed-stage funding deals.
  • Elevation and Matrix Partners were the busiest investors this week as they participated in two deals each.

Startup Fund Launches This Week

  • B2B SaaS-focused venture capital firm Pentathlon Ventures announced the launch of a second fund, Fund II, with a target corpus of INR 450 Cr. The fund plans to invest in 25 startups.
  • Unicorn India Ventures announced the first close of its INR 1,000 Cr Fund III at INR 225 Cr. The VC firm is looking to close the fund by March 2024. The VC firm intends to invest in 25 startups from this fund.
  • Soonicorn Ventures has received SEBI’s nod to launch an angel fund with a total corpus set at INR 250 Cr. It also has an additional INR 250 Cr green-shoe option. 
  • National Real Estate Development Council (NAREDCO) Maharashtra has announced the launch of INR 50 Cr RealTech Fund to back proptech startups. 
  • Anicut Capital has secured an investment of INR 50 Cr from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) for the Anicut Equity Fund.

Startup Acquisitions Of This Week

  • Delhi NCR-based omnichannel meat brand Good To Go acquired Chennai-based meat delivery startup TenderCuts in a distress sale.
  • Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) is acquiring a majority stake (51%) in Alia Bhatt’s children’s wear D2C brand Ed-a-Mamma.
  • Oneglint Media Solutions, a photography solutions company, acquired Memzo – an AI-powered photo-sharing product.
  • PowerSchool, a cloud-based software for K-12 education, acquired Chennai-based enterprise resource planning software startup Neverskip for an undisclosed amount.
  • After raising $2.5 Mn, Hybrid Shifting Solution is acquiring Pikkol, an AI-based technology-enabled logistics brand.
  • GOAT Brand Labs has completed the acquisition of the remaining stake in Frangipani, in line with the terms initially set during their majority acquisition in 2021.

Other Major Developments From This Week

  • Delhi NCR-based fintech unicorn BharatPe is in talks with existing investors to raise $100 Mn in a new round of funding. 
  • Bhavish Aggarwal’s Ola Electric has reportedly raised $140 Mn in a funding round led by Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund Temasek with participation from other existing investors.
  • The Odisha government has approved a grant worth INR 1.28 Cr for 10 startups with an aim to boost innovation and entrepreneurship in the state.

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Inc42 Daily Brief

Stay Ahead With Daily News & Analysis on India’s Tech & Startup Economy

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