Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Jan 27-1 Feb]

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

In one of the biggest funding rounds, Bengaluru-based fintech startup MoneyTap raised $70 Mn (INR 500 Cr) in a fresh round of debt and equity funding.

The company said that the fresh funding was led by Aquiline Technology Growth, RTP Global and Sequoia India, along with a clutch of undisclosed South Korean and Japanese investors. Existing investors Prime Venture Partners and MegaDelta also participated in the round.

Overall, 16 startups raised around $158.7 Mn funding in the Indian startup ecosystem this week. (This funding report is based on startups that disclosed funding amount.)

Indian Startup Funding Of The Week

1. MoneyTap: $70 Mn
2. Bizongo: $30 Mn
3. InterviewBit: $20 Mn
4. Doubtnut: $15 Mn
5. 1MG: $9.9 Mn
6. AdOnMo:$3 Mn
7. Kisan Network: $3 Mn
8. Zetwerk: $2.2 Mn
9. Unotech Software: $2 Mn
10. Vogo: $2 Mn
11. WizKlub: $1 Mn
12. YOLO: $600K
13. Sprinng Foods: Undisclosed
14. RACEnergy: Undisclosed
15. Uniplatform Tech: Undisclosed
16. Aagey: Undisclosed

• Bizongo

Mumbai-based B2B packaging marketplace Bizongo raised $30 Mn Series C round led by Switzerland-based hedge fund Schroder Adveq. Existing investors — B Capital, Accel, Chiratae Ventures and International Finance Corporation (IFC) — also participated in the funding round. With the recently raised funds, the company is looking to improve existing technologies. “We are also looking to expand into newer sectors such as pharma packaging, and increase Bizongo’s penetration across India,” said Aniket Deb, cofounder and CEO of Bizongo.

• InterviewBit

Bengaluru-based edtech startup InterviewBit raised $20 Mn in Series A funding round. The investment has been led by Sequoia India and Tiger Global with participation from Global Founders Capital among others. The funds will be used to scale up enrollment i.e add more users and launch in new markets, while also investing in curriculum development and the live teaching product to enhance the end-to-end learning experience for students and teachers.

• Doubtnut

Edtech startup Doubtnut has raised $15 Mn in a fresh round of funding led by Tencent with participation from existing investors Omidyar Network India, Japan-based Akatsuki Entertainment Fund and Curefit founder Ankit Nagori along with Sequoia Capital India. Doubtnut said it will be using the funds to widen its pan-India distribution to reach more users through its multilingual approach, build a bigger content library to retain users as their lessons progress and invest in strengthening its technology stack and scaling its team.

• Vogo

Bengaluru-based two-wheeler rental platform Vogo has raised yet another tranche of its bridge Series C funding round. According to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs filings accessed by Inc42, the company in December 2019 and January 2020 received $2 Mn (INR 14.36 Cr) in Series C bridge funding from existing investors Kalaari Capital and Matrix Partners.

• 1MG

Gurugram-headquartered healthtech startup 1MG has raised $9.9 Mn from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, according to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs filings accessed by Inc42. 1MG was launched in April 2015, after Healthkart — founded by Prashant Tandon, Gaurav Agarwal, and Vikas Chauhan — separated its generic drug search business, HealthkartPlus, and rebranded it to 1MG. The company has three business verticals — Pharmaceuticals, Labs, and Doctors.

• AdOnMo

Hyderabad-based out-of-home (OOH) advertising startup AdOnMo raised $3 Mn in a funding round led by Ant Financials’ BAce Capital. Astarc Ventures and Mumbai Angels Network also participated in the funding round. AdOnMo plans to utilise the funds for product development and expand the team. The company is also looking to deepen its presence in India with the help of these funds.

• Kisan Network

Gurugram-based agritech startup Kisan Network raised $3 Mn in a seed funding round. The investment has been led by Atsushi Taira at Mistletoe, with participation from Y Combinator, the Thiel Foundation, Venture Highway, FundersClub, Lynett Capital, Gokul Rajaram and other angels. The funds will be used towards expansion into new regions and to add support for more crops across the country. A portion of the funds will also be used towards introducing new farmer-centric products and services.

• Zetwerk

Bengaluru-based manufacturing services platform Zetwerk has raised $2.2 Mn (INR 16 Cr) in a fresh funding round from InnoVen Capital. With the recently raised funds, the company is focussing on deepening tech and manufacturing capabilities, and widening supplier base.

• Unotech Software

Mumbai-based tech enterprise startup Unotech Software has raised $2Mn Series A funding from Manish Choksi, promoter of Asian Paints. Unotech said it would evolve into an open source IT platform and services organisation with specialisation in identity management, business process automation and digital transformation. The fresh capital will also be used to reconstruct the company’s market presence.

• YOLO

Gurgaon-based luxury bus service provider YOLO has raised $600K as seed funding by an undisclosed VC firm and a couple of undisclosed angel investors. The funds raised round will be invested across territory expansion plans, technology and marketing strategies.

• WizKlub

Bengaluru based cognitive development edtech startup WizKlub has raised a seed round of INR 7 Cr ($1 Mn) led by Japan-based VC Incubate Fund India. The round also saw participation from Insitor Impact Asia Fund. The startup plans to use the fresh capital for product and market expansion.

• Sprinng Foods

Mumbai-based Sprinng Foods has raised an undisclosed seed funding from angel investors. Sprinng Foods cofounder Tarun Khanna said that the company has secured seed funding to scale the business to more regions and expand its range of products.

• RACEnergy

Hyderabad-based electric vehicle startup RACEnergy has raised an undisclosed funding seed round from growX ventures, Prophetic Ventures and other angels from the energy industry, as part of Huddle’s EV Accelerator Program. The startup was founded in 2018 by Arun Sreyas and Gautham Maheswaran.

• Uniplatform Tech

New-Delhi based SaaS platform Uniplatform Tech has raised an undisclosed funding Frontline Strategy Funds, SucSEED Venture Partners LLP and other investors. The startup which runs its real-estate focussed SaaS platform MultiplyMyLeads.com will invest the funds for expansion.

• Aagey

Bengaluru-based Aagey has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from JITO Angel Network, Ketan Kothari of Arvog, Girish Jain from KJMC Financial Services Ltd, Sunil Singhvi from South Handlooms, Vinay Jain from MLM India, among others. The latest round of investment will help the company to expand its operations and develop the technology.

Indian Startup Acquisitions Of The Week

In a rare instance of nonprofit mergers, online donation platform Small Change will merge with Bengaluru-based online donation platform GiveIndia. The merger will scale giving from ordinary citizens and make a meaningful impact on alleviating poverty. Both platforms help other non-profit organisations to raise funds.

Other Developments Of The Week

• Bharti Airtel’s financial service arm Airtel Payments Bank has raised INR 225 Cr from its parent companies Bharti Airtel and Bharti Enterprises to solidify its presence in India and expand to Africa.
• Delhi-based digital payments platform BharatPe is speculated to be close to raising $75 Mn-$100 Mn funding round from other new investors as well as existing backers such as Beenext and Sequoia.
• Google has announced a $1 Mn grant through Google.org to help improve news literacy in India and fight back against misinformation and fake news.
• JSW Ventures, the venture capital arm of JSW Group, is set to mark the first close of its second fund at around INR 150 Cr to INR 155 Cr on February 10, 2020. For the second fund, JSW Ventures has set a target of raising INR 350 Cr, which might get achieved in the subsequent closures.
• US-based accelerator platform Techstars has shortlisted 10 startups for the second batch of the Techstars Bangalore Accelerator, which includes eight startups from India.
• In the run-up to Indian Premier League 2020, which is expected to begin at the end of March, Mumbai-based fantasy gaming startup Dream11 is now raising fresh funds. The company is said to be on the verge of nearly doubling its valuation as Tiger Global looks to become its latest investor. Dream11 is speculated to be raising $500 Mn in funding, which will be led by Tiger Global.
• Global investor Tiger Global Management has reportedly closed a $3.8 Bn global private investment vehicle called the Private Investment Partners (PIP) XII, which will continue to back tech startups in India, US and China.
• T-Hub has selected 45 early-stage tech product startups for the third edition of its incubation program Lab32.
• According to the ministry of corporate affairs, accessed by Inc42, showed that Zomato has issued 76,376 shares to Uber India for 9.6% stake in Zomato under the terms of the Uber Eats acquisition.
• Early-stage venture capital firm Prime Ventures Partners has planned to invest in six companies in 2020. Moreover, Prime Ventures also plans to make some follow-on investments in some of its companies from its existing portfolio of 25 startups.
• US-based investment firm Ribbit Capital is looking to raise $420 Mn for its sixth venture capital fund to continue its investment spree in startups, especially those working in the fintech segment.

Stay tuned for the next week edition of Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week!