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Indian Oil Corporation has launched an initiative, IndS_UP to nurture tech-driven startups. It has also set aside a fund of $4 Mn for the same.
This week 13 startups raised about $97 Mn in funding altogether. (The amount of funding is based on the startups that disclosed their funding.)
Startups Funding Of The Week
Postman: Bengaluru-based startup Postman, which offers a platform for teams developing APIs, secured $7 Mn in Series A funding from Nexus Venture Partners. In February 2016, the Postman co-founders were among the 45 Indians and Indian-origin people that made the Forbes’ annual list of achievers under the age of 30 across varied fields.
Also, online cab aggregator Ola is in talks with SoftBank to raise up to $500 Mn in a fresh round of funding to compete with its nemesis Uber.
Digital creative firm, Gozoop is in talks with UAE-based company 56 Blue Lights for a likely acquisition. 56 Blue Lights is an offline activation agency and syndicated content provider. The move will enable both firms to realise the synergies of online and offline marketing and provide an enhanced 360-degree marketing experience to their clients.
Other Developments Of The Week
- Anita Borg Institute India, National Science & Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB), Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India and Indo-US Science and Technology Forum (IUSSTF) have come together to organise the sixth edition of Women Entrepreneur Quest 2016. The event will be held at the Grace Hopper Celebration India (GHCI) conference. And top 10 women entrepreneurs working in the fields of technology will win a trip to the US.
- This week Nasscom 10,000 Startups’ TechMarch 2016 reached Ahmedabad and Delhi, selecting 19 startups together. The next stop is Coimbatore (October 15), and then the TechMarch team will move to Kolkata (October 18). The finale will be held on October 26, 2016, on the sidelines of National Product Conclave in Bengaluru.
- The 21st Wharton India Economic Forum (WIEF) announced its Wharton India Startup Competition. The startups will have an opportunity to reach to over 100 colleges and 50 accelerators, incubators, and VCs. The finalists will pitch to top Indian entrepreneurs and venture capitalists on January 6, 2017, in Mumbai.
- The founders of Calcutta Angels Network Raghav Kanoria, Kumar Patodia, and CD Mitra have launched Neoleap Accelerator in Kolkata and announced the startups that are part of the first batch. The four-month-long accelerator programme claims to be the first privately structured accelerator in East India.
- Early-stage venture capital firm Axilor inducted 10 startups as part of its accelerator programme for the Winter 2016 batch. Axilor’s structured programme is for founders in the very early stages of their idea, as it comes with a host of benefits. At the end of the 100 days, most startups achieving the programme goals get a funding of INR 25 Lakhs through Axilor’s Scale-up programme.
Shripad Yesso Naik, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for AYUSH has launched ‘Elixir for Life’, an Ayurvedic medicine, under the Venture Capital Fund Scheme for Scheduled Caste (SC) entrepreneurs.
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