Funding Galore: From BharatPe To Zoomcar — $25 Mn Raised By Indian Startups [May 10-15]

We bring to you the latest edition of Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week

This week, the marketplace unit of the US-based ecommerce giant Amazon named Amazon Seller Services received a capital infusion of $124 Mn (INR 915 Cr), documents with the Registrar of Companies showed. The investment was led by Singapore-based Amazon Corporate Holdings, with participation from the parent entity Amazon.com Inc. Both were allotted a combined 915 Mn equity shares at a value of INR 10 per share ($0.14).

Meanwhile, Walmart-owned ecommerce giant Flipkart is reportedly in talks with  sovereign funds, private equity majors and other investors for a $1 Bn – $2 Bn funding round. The fundraise is expected to fuel Flipkart’s expansion plans and get an adjusted valuation based on the performance of its various verticals.

Acko To Be Next Unicorn

Acko General Insurance may be the next unicorn of the Indian startup ecosystem, as the company is considering to raise a $200 Mn round at a valuation of $1 Bn. According to media reports, the startup is considering a public listing this year. If the funding round comes through, Acko would be the 12th Indian startup to enter the unicorn club this year. This after India saw six startups, namely Groww, Gupshup, CRED, ShareChat, PharmEasy, and Meesho, become unicorns in April.

The company was founded by Varun Dua and Ruchi Deepak in 2016 as a digital general insurance platform, which creates products and delivers opportunities in areas such as personalised insurance products based on user consumption behaviours. This is done by offering bite-sized insurance products for drivers and others working in transportation and related sectors.

SoftBank Transfers 40% InMobi Shareholding To Vision Fund 2

Japanese tech conglomerate SoftBank Group has transferred around 40% of its shareholdings in Indian mobile adtech unicorn InMobi to SoftBank Vision Fund 2. The development comes as the Bengaluru-based company is all set to make its public market debut this year.

SoftBank first invested in InMobi in 2011, when the adtech firm became India’s first unicorn. It was also SoftBank’s first investment in an Indian company. It has since invested in several Indian startups such as Flipkart, FirstCry, Grofers and PolicyBazaar.

Top Indian Startup Funding Deals This Week

Overall, $25 Mn was invested in Indian startups across 19 deals this week.

Note: This funding report is based on startups that disclosed funding amounts

Acquisitions This Week

Sitics Logistic Solutions Acquires Quifers

Sitics Logistic Solutions announced the acquisition of Quifers, a logistics tech startup revolutionising logistics and developing disruptive technologies, for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition of Quifers would help Sitics transition from a “solution-based service provider” to a “technology-based service provider”.

FuelBuddy acquires MyPetrolPump

Delhi-based fuel delivery startup FuelBuddy has acquired Bangalore based on-demand fuel delivery startup MyPetrolPump, for a cash and stock consideration. With this acquisition, FuelBuddy will have over 100 bowsers (refuellers) under management, servicing 30 cities and all market segments with a combined delivery volume of nearly 40 million litres along with an experience of nearly 100,000 processed orders.

Fund Announcement

• Serial investor Sanjay Mehta led 100x.VC has announced 11 early-stage startups that will be part of the fund’s Class 04. These 11 startups are Bhyve, FieldProxy, Powerbot, Inzpira, Croup AI, Creators Club, Talkie,  DataKund, Quizy Games, Moving and Clinify.
• The Securities and Exchange Board of India’s (SEBI) new regulations, which put a threshold on the amount that private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) funds can invest in a company or another investment vehicle, are likely to force these funds to realign some of their investments. The new regulations impact PE and VC funds registered under the Alternative Investment Funds 1 & 2 categories and hedge funds registered under the AIF 3 category in India.