Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [15 - 20 July]

During the week, as many as 35 Indian startups raised around $261.21 million in funding. These deals count 9 growth-stage deals and 22 early-stage deals while 4 early-stage startups kept their transaction details undisclosed.

During the previous week, 22 early and growth-stage startups cumulatively raised more $116.26 million in funding.

[Growth-stage deals]

Among the growth-stage deals, 9 startups raised $168.63 million in funding this week. Home service marketplace Urban Company spearheaded with its $38 million secondary funding round. Education loan-focused NBFC Auxilo, fintech firm Blacksoil, and EV ride-hailing service provider BluSmart followed with $30 million, $24.8 million, and $24 million in funding, respectively.

[Early-stage deals]

Further, 22 early-stage startups secured funding worth $92.58 million during the week. gen-z focused fast fashion D2C brand Newme led the list followed by artificial intelligence startup UptimeAI, community-led mobility app Namma Yatri, NBFC Seeds Fincap, and multi-category biscuit manufacturer Nurture Well.

Edtech platform focused on engineering education byteXL, EV bus startup FreshBus, and aquatech startup Boon also raised funding among others. For more information, visit TheKredible.

[City and segment-wise deals]

In terms of the city-wise number of funding deals, Bengaluru-based startups led with 12 deals followed by Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Chennai, and Jaipur among others.

Segment-wise, fintech startups grabbed the top spot with nine deals. AI, E-commerce, Healthtech, and Automotive tech startups followed this list among others.

[Series-wise deals]

During the week, Seed funding deals led the list with 14 deals followed by 6 Series A, 4 debt, 3 pre-Series A deals, and 2 Series B deals. Angel, pre-Seed, pre-Series B, Secondary, Series C, and Series J are next on the list with one deal each.

[Week-on-week funding trend]

On a weekly basis, startup funding bounced back by nearly 125% to $261.21 million as compared to around $116 million raised during the previous week.

The average funding in the last eight weeks stands at around $358 million with 29 deals per week.

[Fund launches]

PROMAFT Partners, led by industry veterans Raghav Bahl and Soham Avlani, has raised a significant Rs 1,000 crore to invest in startups. Yali Capital, targeting the deeptech space, has also launched a sizeable fund of Rs 810 crore. Additionally, real estate investment firm Altern Capital aims to raise Rs 250 crore through their first fund.

Defence startup-focused Jamwant Ventures has secured its first round of funding for their angel fund. Excitel co-founder Vivek Raina's incubator fund, Launchpad Kashmir, aims to support startups in Jammu & Kashmir. These developments highlight the growing investor interest in the Indian startup ecosystem.

[ESOP buyback]

In a move to incentivize employees, Swiggy, the food delivery giant, announced a $65 million ESOP liquidity program. This marks its fifth such program since 2018, allowing employees across the company to sell their stock options (ESOPs) in a secondary market. This program follows two consecutive events held in July 2022 and 2023.

[Key hirings and departures]

In key leadership moves, wealthtech startup Fisdom appointed Girish Venkat to head its wealth management business. Logistics unicorn Delhivery strengthened its operations by bringing Prashant Gazipur on board as a senior vice president. Additionally, Early-stage VC firm Orios Venture Partners bolstered its investment team with Madhav Tandan as a senior partner.

In terms of departures, Bengaluru-based startup Simplilearn sees the departure of its chief product officer, Anand Narayanan, after an eight-year stint with the company. Meanwhile, Unacademy, another major edtech player, is experiencing its own leadership shift. Following the co-founder Hemesh Singh's exit, Jagnoor Singh, COO of Unacademy's offline centers, is also resigning.

[M&A]

Nazara Technologies, a gaming and sports media company, has fully acquired Paper Boat Apps, developer of the popular children's learning app Kiddopia, for a total investment of Rs 300 crore. This follows their initial 50.91% stake acquisition in 2019. Meanwhile, Collective Artists Network, a talent management and influencer marketing firm, has bolstered its creator and content ecosystem by acquiring galleri5, an AI-powered platform, indicating a potential shift towards AI-driven strategies in the creator management space.

[Potential deals]

Moneyboxx, a lending platform, aims to raise Rs 271 crore ($32.4 Mn) through preferential share issuance and warrants. With the capital infusion, it plans to fuel the growth and expand its reach in rural India, specifically targeting micro-entrepreneurs for financial support.

Visit TheKredible to see series-wise deals along with amount breakup, complete details of fund launches, and more insights.

[Financial results this week]

▪️ Paytm reports Rs 1,501.6 Cr revenue and Rs 840 Cr loss in Q1 FY25

▪️ Jio Financial Services reports flat growth in Q1 FY25 as interest income declines 43%

[News flash this week]

▪️ Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal book 200X return from Urban Company

▪️ Moneyview set to turn unicorn in Series F round

▪️ Google Maps cuts prices by 70% for developers after Ola Maps’ free offering

▪️ Deepinder Goyal enters billionaire club; his holding in Zomato touches $1 Bn

▪️ Nazara’s subsidiaries receive Rs 1,120 Cr GST notice

▪️ Creditors may take over Byju’s as NCLT admits insolvency resolution

▪️ Crypto exchange WazirX hit by cyber attack, $230 Mn stolen

▪️ Trading app Investmint goes for liquidation process

[Conclusion]

The weekly funding bounced back by nearly 125% to $261.21 million. This week saw five startup-focused fund launches by VC firms: Promaft Partners, Jamwant Ventures, Alteren Capital, Yali Capital, and Launchpad Kashmir.

This week's startup news offered a mixed bag of stories. We saw some bright spots, like Titan Capital's impressive returns on their investment in Urban Company and Moneyview's potential unicorn status. Additionally, Google's move to make its Maps platform more affordable for Indian developers is a positive step for the tech ecosystem.

However, there were also challenges on display. Nazara Technologies' hefty tax liability and Byju's insolvency proceedings highlight the financial struggles some startups face. The cyberattack on WazirX raises concerns about security in the cryptocurrency space, while Investmint's liquidation underscores the competitive nature of the startup landscape.

Overall, the week's news underscores the dynamic nature of the Indian startup scene. While there are opportunities for significant growth and returns, there are also substantial hurdles to overcome.