Indian startups cumulatively raised $121.8 Mn across 21 deals between May 13 and 18, down 45% from last week
Fintech regained its dominance in weekly funding trends, with startups in the sector raising $33.1 Mn across three deals
Seed funding continued to tumble down this week as well, with startups at this stage securing $3.5 Mn this week
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]
Date
Name
Sector
Subsector
Business Model
Funding Round Size
Funding Round Type
Investors
Lead Investor
17 May 2024
Propelld
Fintech
Lendingtech
B2C
$25 Mn
Debt
Credit Saison India, AU Small Finance Bank, InCred Financial Services, Northern Arc Capital
–
15 May 2024
RED.Health
Healthtech
Healthcare Services
B2C-B2B
$20 Mn
Series B
Jungle Ventures,HealthQuad, HealthX, Alteria Capital
Jungle Ventures
13 May 2024
Dhaksha Unmanned Systems
Deeptech
Dronetech
B2B-B2C
$18 Mn
–
Coromandel International Limited
Coromandel International Limited
14 May 2024
Niqo Robotics
Deeptech
IoT & Hardware
B2B
$13 Mn
Series B
Bidra Innovation Ventures, Fulcrum Global Capital, Omnivore
Bidra Innovation Ventures
14 May 2024
Rupeek
Fintech
Lendingtech
B2C
$6.1 Mn
–
One Large Value Fund, BlackSoil
–
14 May 2024
Celcius
Logistics
Supply Chain
B2B
$4.7 Mn
pre-Series B
IvyCap Ventures, Mumbai Angels, Caret Capital
IvyCap Ventures
16 May 2024
SolarSquare
Cleantech
SolarTech
B2B-B2C
$4.2 Mn
–
Zerodha Technology, Abhijeet Pai, Gruhas Proptech, Lowercarbon Capital, Good Capital
–
16 May 2024
Matel
Cleantech
Electric Vehical
B2B
$4 Mn
Series A
Transition VC, Gruhas, Haresh Abichandani
Transition VC
17 May 2024
3SC
Logistics
Supply Chain
B2B
$4 Mn
–
GEF Capital
GEF Capital
14 May 2024
Highperforrmr.AI
Enterprisetech
Horizontal SaaS
B2B
$3.5 Mn
Seed
Venture Highway, The Neon Fund, DeVC
Venture Highway
17 May 2024
OTPless
Enterprisetech
Horizontal SaaS
B2B-B2C
$3.5 Mn
Pre-Series A
SIDBI, Venture Highway, FJ Labs, Piper Serica
SIDBI
15 May 2024
Stupa Sports Analytics
Enterprisetech
Horizontal SaaS
B2B
$3.3 Mn
pre-Series A
Centre Court Capital, PeerCapital
Centre Court Capital, PeerCapital
15 May 2024
DrinkPrime
Ecommerce
D2C
B2C
$3 Mn
–
SIDBI Venture Capital
SIDBI Venture Capital
16 May 2024
InstaAstro
Consumer Services
Hyperlocal Serives
B2C
$2.3 Mn
Pre-Series A
Artha Venture Fund, LogX Ventures, Singularity Ventures, InfraRed Capital Partners, Blume Founders Fund, Aloke Bajpai
Artha Venture Fund
14 May 2024
BimaPay
Fintech
Lendingtech
B2C
$2 Mn
–
LC Nueva Investment Partners
LC Nueva Investment Partners
16 May 2024
Gramophone
Agritech
Farm Advisory
B2C
$1.8 Mn
–
Info Edge
Info Edge
16 May 2024
The Betal Leaf
Ecommerce
D2C
B2C
$1.2 Mn
–
Inflection Point Ventures and Venture Catalysts
Inflection Point Ventures and Venture Catalysts
15 May 2024
Infurnia
Real Estate Tech
Real Estate Services
B2B-B2C
$1.2 Mn
–
Yogesh Chaudhary, Coast to Coast, Greenply, Ozone
Yogesh Chaudhary
13 May 2024
BEYOBO
Ecommerce
B2B Ecommerce
B2B
$802K
pre-Series A
Indian Angel Network, International Startup Foundation, SAN Angels
Indian Angel Network
16 May 2024
Stylework
Real Estate Tech
Shared Spaces
B2C
$120K
Series A2
BizDateUp Technologies
BizDateUp Technologies
15 May 2024
Sprect
Consumer Services
Hyperlocal Serives
B2C
$60K
Siddarth Shetty
Siddarth Shetty
Source: Inc42
*Part of a larger round
Note: Only disclosed funding rounds have been included
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.
