Funding Galore: From Rapido To WinZO — $91 Mn Raised By Indian Startups [May 3-8]

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

Indian startups had raised $4.6 Bn in April 2021, representing a 2.8X increase from $1.6 Bn raised in March 2021. The number of deals, on the other hand, remained almost the same with 111 deals recorded in March and 110 in April 2021. The month was filled with 13 mega rounds (rounds with $100 Mn or more infusion), compared to 2 in March 2021. The second week of April made a big difference in the startup funding, as $2.5 Bn was invested that week across 34 deals.

The major credit goes to the new entrants to the unicorn club. In April alone, eight companies entered the unicorn club, including social commerce Meesho, epharmacy startup PharmaEasy, credit card bill payment app CRED, wealth management platform Groww, vernacular social media platform Sharechat, internal communication platform Gupshup, subscription management platform Chargebee and on-demand service platform Urban Company.

The first week of May started with a fall in the over startup funding compared to the growth witnessed in April. Overall, $44.6 Mn was invested in Indian startups across 18 deals in the first week of May. Some of these include Rapido’s $43.4 Mn infusion, Teachmint’s $16.5 Mn and Winzo’s $13 Mn.

Besides these, Bengaluru-based mental health startup Wysa is preparing for a fresh round amid the deepening mental health crisis in India given the devastation of lives and livelihoods in the second wave of the Covid pandemic. The company, which had raised funding from Google in March 2020, is now looking to raise $4.6 Mn from various investors.

According to the company’s filing with the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), Wysa will offer 10 equity shares at a face value of INR 1 per share and a premium of INR 8,631 each, and 39,606 Series A3 preference shares at a face value of INR 10 per share and a premium of INR 8,622 each to various investors. The funds will be raised from W Health Global, pi Ventures, Kae Capital, Beeline Impex, Shangrila Infotech and Kateel Software.

Top Indian Startup Funding Deals This Week

Overall, $91 Mn was invested in Indian startups across 18 deals this week.

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

Zomato To Invest $100 Mn in Grofers

IPO-bound food delivery giant Zomato may invest $100 Mn in online grocery startup Grofers after talks of a possible merger between the two fell through last year. The company’s investment is likely part of a larger financing round and may value Grofers at around $1 Bn, as per media report.

Zomato had entered the online grocery space and exited it after a brief experiment last year, Swiggy continues to scale up its online grocery presence with Instamart, its quick delivery service for essentials which is currently available in Gurugram and Bengaluru.

Acquisitions This Week

Mahindra’s Meru Cabs Acquisition Is Now Complete

Indian multinational automotive manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra have completed Meru Cabs acquisitions, and now owns 100% stake in the cab hailing company. Mahindra had acquired a 55% stake in Meru for INR 201.5 Cr in August 2019, which would be completed over several tranches. By April 30 2021, Mahindra held 43.2% of the equity share capital of Meru.

Fund Announcement

• European Investment Bank (EIB), along with the State Bank of India (SBI), will be investing $120.5 Mn in Neev Fund II, which will focus on small medium businesses (SMB) working on climate action and sustainability business financing.