Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Feb 17-22]

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

In one of the biggest funding rounds this week, food delivery giant Swiggy has raised $113 Mn as part of its Series I funding round led by existing investor Prosus N.V. The latest funding round also saw participation from existing investors Meituan Dianping and Wellington Management Company.

The online food aggregator will be using fresh capital to further develop its new lines of business, addressing visible gaps in the market. The company will continue to invest in new growth areas such as Stores, Go and SuprDaily.

Overall, 17 startups raised around $332.35 Mn funding and five startup acquisitions took place in the Indian startup ecosystem. (This funding report is based on startups that disclosed funding amount.)

Indian Startup Funding Of The Week

1. 1. 1. Swiggy: $113 Mn
      2. Unacademy: $110 Mn
      3. Whatfix: $32 Mn
      4. OnsiteGo: $19 Mn
      5. Carbon Clean Solutions: $16 Mn
      6. Dunzo: $11 Mn
      7. Zvesta: $5.5 Mn
      8. MaxWholesale: $3 Mn
      9. InVideo: $2.5 Mn
      10. Prayaan Capital: $1.2 Mn
      11. Sanfe: $1.1 Mn
      12. Go Desi: $630K
      13. PlanetSpark: $450K
      14. AvalonMeta: $420K
      15. Near.Store: $300K
      16. Genius Corner: $250K
      17. ElecTorq: Undisclosed

• Unacademy

Bengaluru-based edtech startup Unacademy has raised $110 Mn in a Series E funding round from social media giant Facebook, General Atlantic, Sequoia India, Nexus Venture Partners, Steadview Capital and Blume Ventures. Kalyan Krishnamurthy, CEO, Flipkart and Sujeet Kumar, cofounder, Udaan also participated in this round of funding. Unacademy said it will utilise the funding to further penetrate into the test preparation categories, launching more exam categories, acquiring top educators, and creating exceptional learning experiences for the learners through great content and product. In addition to raising the funding, Unacademy also provided exits to some of the angel investors.

• Whatfix

Bengaluru and San Jose-based enterprise tech startup Whatfix has raised $32 Mn in Series C funding round led by Sequoia Capital India. Whatfix’s existing investors Eight Roads Ventures, F-Prime Capital, and Cisco Investments also participated in the round. With this funding, Whatfix will drive product development and expand into new markets such as Europe and Australia. The company is also looking to address the growing demand for its digital adoption solutions (DAS) which help businesses update their operations and increase the ROI on technology.

• OnsiteGo

Mumbai-based extended warranty and device protection services provider, Onsitego, has raised $19 Mn (INR 136 Cr) in a Series B funding round led by Zodius Growth Fund. Onsitego’s existing investor Accel India has also participated in the funding round, along with Accel US. Onsitego is planning to use the funding to develop stronger marketing strategies and branding activities.

• Carbon Clean Solutions

London-headquartered and IIT Kharagpur-incubated cleantech startup Carbon Clean Solutions has raised $16 Mn in a fresh round of funding. The investment came in from WAVE Equity Partners, Chevron Technology Ventures, and Marubeni Corporation.

• Dunzo

Bengaluru-based hyperlocal services provider Dunzo has raised $11 Mn in a debt funding round from Alteria Capital. With this funding round, Dunzo is looking to scale up its operations in profitable locations.

• Zvesta

Gurugram-based proptech startup Zvesta has raised $5.5 Mn from media company Hindustan Media Ventures. With the recently raised funding, the company is planning to invest in brand building and collaborative marketing of real estate properties across the country. Zvesta also wants to focus on building pan-India partnerships with real estate builders and brokers.

• MaxWholesale

B2B ecommerce platform for kirana stores, MaxWholesale, has raised $3 Mn in Series A funding round led by Indian Angel Network (IAN) Fund I and Abu Dhabi-based private family office Al Falaj Investment Company (AFI). MaxWholesale is planning to use this funding to hire talent, develop technology, accelerate growth and expand the network of kirana stores. Prior to this, the company has raised $1 Mn in Pre-Series A funding round led by IAN and Maple Capital Advisors.

• InVideo

Video editing and content creation software maker InVideo, has raised $2.5 Mn in a round led by Sequoia Capital India’s early-stage accelerator programme Surge. Former Facebook exec and Five9’s Anand Chandrasekaran, and DoorDash’s Gokul Rajaram have also invested in the round. So far, the company has raised $3.2 Mn. InVideo plans to use the funding to scale up its platform for a global audience, “while investing in its community and expanding the current product pipeline.”

• Prayaan Capital

Fintech startup Prayaan Capital Private Limited has raised $1.2 Mn in a seed funding round led by Accion Venture Lab. With the recently raised funds, the startup plans to improve its technology and expand its operations.

• Sanfe

Female hygiene brand Sanfe has raised $1.1 Mn (INR 8 Cr) in a Pre-Series A funding round from SucSEED Venture Partners, BIRAC, Elixir Pharma and Titan Capital, an investment arm of Snapdeal cofounders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal. The company is looking to take its products to European and African markets in the next phase.

• Go Desi

Bengaluru based FMCG startup Go Desi has raised $630K (INR 4.5 Cr) in a funding round led by New Delhi-based Rukam Capital. Other investors who participated in the round are AngelList and Upaya Social Ventures. The current round of funding will help the company expand operations, launch a larger portfolio of products and spread geographically. The last round of funding raised by GO DESi was in September 2018.

• PlanetSpark

Gurugram-based edtech startup PlanetSpark has raised $450K (INR 3.2 Cr) Pre Series A from Indian Angel Network, Lead Angels and Hyderabad Angels with participation from existing investor FIITJEE Limited. The company will use the funds in expanding its business into new geographies and increasing enrolments over the next 12-15 months.

• AvalonMeta

Edtech startup AvalonMeta has raised $420K in a funding round led by gaming company Peerplays. Chicago-based venture capital firm Purvi Capital and former Unacademy’s design head Abhinav Chhikara also participated in this round.

• Near.Store

Mumbai-based Near.Store has raised $300K as seed funding from Sauce.vc and other angel investors. Near.Store enables a shop to create an online presence and makes the shop products easily discoverable in simple steps. Near.Store is currently in a pilot stage and is present in two cities. The startup aims to expand to over 10 cities in the next six months.

• Genius Corner

Noida-based edtech startup Genius Corner has raised $250K from Singapore-based angel investors Mahesh Mohta, Jyoti Arora, Nachu Subramanian and Srivats. The funds raised by Genius Corner will be utilised to on-board 30K students on the platform.

• ElecTorq

Delhi based electric vehicle startup ElecTorq has raised an undisclosed investment from AdvantEdge. ElecTorq is a design and technology developing startup which is focused on building India specific solutions for micro-mobility.

Indian Startup Acquisitions Of The Week

• Chennai-headquartered conglomerate TVS Group’s automobile solutions division has acquired Mumbai-based automobile after-sales services startup CarCrew for an undisclosed amount. CarCrew was founded by Vikul Goyal and Vikram Sharma in 2016. With a presence in 20 cities and more than 2,000 workshops in India, the startup offers a technology platform for aftermarket sales and services of automobiles.
• Bengaluru-based fashion retailer Voonik has now merged with Bangladesh-based social commerce platform ShopUp. Founded in 2013 by Sujayath Ali and Navaneetha Krishnan, Voonik began as a personal shopping app for women, which allows them to buy apparels from multiple stores, according to their body type, lifestyle and budget.
• Auction platform for used vehicles Shriram Automall India Limited (SAMIL) has acquired New-Delhi based online car selling portal BlueJack at an undisclosed amount. The acquisition will help Shriram Automall enhance its offline auction market with online used car sales. BlueJack’s team will join Shriram Automall.
• Gurugram-based PreLoved Device has acquired Overcart in a cash and stock deal. Post this acquisition, Overcart, backed by JSW Ventures, Omidyar Network, Sattva Capital and Venture Works will be operated under the PreLoved Device brand name.
• Noida-based skilling platform Digital Vidya has acquired Delhi School of Internet Marketing (DSIM) in an all-cash deal. Digital Vidya with this acquisition will expand its reach in the major cities by delivering high-quality offline digital marketing certification programs at affordable prices on a large scale.

Other Developments Of The Week

• Early-stage venture capital firm Blume Ventures has announced the final close of its Fund III at $102 Mn. The fund has been raised from anchor investors in India, US, Japan and Asia, along with existing limited partners who have invested in the firm’s previous funds.
• Bengaluru-based insurtech startup Digit Insurance has raised INR 2.5 Cr ($340K) from the celebrity couple of Indian cricketer Virat Kohli and Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma in the recently closed $84 Mn funding round.
• Mumbai-based fantasy gaming startup Dream11 is now looking to double up its valuation to $2.5 Bn after the latest funding round.
• Petrochemical major Shell has announced the 10 mid-stage startups shortlisted for its flagship incubation programme E4 Scale Track 2020. Selected shartups — Energos, IOTomation, LogicLadder, Jal Technologies, Go GreenEOT, Eee-Taxi, Commutec, Offgrid, Magenta Power, and APChemi.
• US-based investment firm Falcon Edge Capital has set up a new venture capital fund of $300 Mn for India. Backed by limited partners (LPs) from the UAE, the new fund will also invest in Southeast Asia.
• Mumbai-based JioSaavn has received INR 140.35 Cr ($19.6 Mn) infusion from parent entity Reliance Industries Limited. According to the Ministry of Corporate filings accessed by Inc42, Reliance picked up 10K equity shares at a nominal value of INR 1 with a premium of INR 1.4 Lakh worth INR 140.35 Cr earlier this month.

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