Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [Mar 31 - Apr 05]

During the week, 30 Indian startups raised a total of approximately $357.29 million, including 6 growth-stage and 21 early-stage deals, while 3 startups kept their funding details undisclosed.

In comparison, the previous week saw 23 startups across early and growth stages secure around $152.49  million.

Growth-stage deals

This week in growth-stage funding, Used car platform Spinny raised $131 led by Used car platform, while robotics company Chef Robotics bagged $43 million. Travel fintech company Scapia also raised $40 million in its Series B round led by Peak XV Partners. Micro-LAP finance Infinity Fincorp, digital storytelling platform Pratilipi and  defense technology firm Tonbo Imaging also secured funding this week.

Early-stage deals

Further, 21 early-stage startups collectively raised a total of $62.19 million in funding. Clean energy startup Aerem led the early-stage funding with a $11.7 million round followed by RapidClaims, South Indian food brand Sweet Karam Coffee, men’s fashion brand The Bear House House, AI startup Further AI, edtech firm CollegeDekho and others.

E-commerce roll up startup Evenflow, transit retail chain Yatrikart and cafe chain  Bistro57 also raised a sum but did not disclose the amount raised.

For a detailed funding breakdown, visit TheKredible.

City and segment-wise deals

In terms of the city-wise number of funding deals, Bengaluru-based startups led with 13 deals followed by Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Chennai, Indore & others.

Segment-wise, healthtech startups are at the top spot with 5 deals. Foodtech and E-commerce startups followed with 4 deals each. Mobility, Fintech, AI, Edtech and others also bagged the deals.

Series-wise deals

During the week, Seed funding deals led with 10 deals followed by Series A, Series D, Debt, Series A and others.

Week-on-week funding trend

On a weekly basis, startup funding jumped over 2.3X to $357.29 million as compared to around $152.49  million raised during the previous week.

The average funding in the last eight weeks stands at around $271.16 million with 25 deals per week.

Key Hirings

This week saw some notable leadership changes across companies. Logistics firm Xpressbees appointed Uday R. Sharma as Chief Business Officer - B2B, 3PL, and Cross Border. Former Federal Bank CEO Shyam Srinivasan joined TVS Capital Funds as a Senior Advisor and Operating Partner. Meanwhile, upGrad's corporate skilling division named Sunita Mohanty as the Revenue Head.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Delhivery Limited has announced the acquisition of a 99.4% stake in Ecom Express Limited, a rival logistics solutions provider, for a cash consideration of up to Rs 1,407 crore. upGrad co-founder Mayank Kumar’s talent mobility startup, BorderPlus, has made its first acquisition by acquiring German healthcare recruitment firm Onea Care.

Visit TheKredible for more details

Fund Launches/Expansion

Zeca Capital to launch its maiden fund with a corpus of Rs 150 crore to invest in sustainability-focussed startups in India.

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

Layoff

Zomato has reportedly given pink slips to as many as 600 customer support associates within a year of hiring them.

Potential Deals

▪️Matrix and Blume invest in D2C fashion brand Freakins

▪️Jai Kisan raises fresh funds in extended Series B

 Financial results this week

▪️McCain India crosses Rs 1,200 Cr revenue in FY24; profit shrinks 29% 

▪️E-waste recycler Attero nears Rs 450 Cr revenue in FY24

▪️ Eruditus clocks Rs 3,733 Cr revenue in FY24, narrows losses by 83%

▪️ Leverage Edu crosses Rs 180 Cr revenue in FY25

[News flash this week]

▪️ Ola Electric registers 23,430 units in March, lagging far behind Bajaj and TVS

▪️ UPI transactions surge 13.6% in March

▪️ IndiQube gets SEBI nod for Rs 850 Cr IPO

▪️ Hood pivots to matchmaking with new brand KnotDating

▪️ Dream11 shifts domicile from US to India

▪️ Shadowfax converts to public entity ahead of IPO

▪️ Kissht plans $225 million IPO, set to file draft papers by June

▪️Samunnati raises Rs 2,300 crore in FY25, strengthening its position in agri-ecosystem

Summary

On a weekly basis, startup funding surged over 2.3X to $357.29 million as compared to around $152.49 million raised during the previous week.

Bajaj Auto has led the electric two-wheeler (e2W) industry for consecutive months, achieving its best-ever monthly sales of 34,863 units in March 2025, securing a 26.76% market share. Meanwhile, Ola Electric trailed behind Bajaj Auto and TVS.

Dream11 parent, Dream Sports Inc., has shifted its domicile from the US (United States) to India, Logistics firm Shadowfax is gearing up for an initial public offering (IPO) in 2025, taking its first major step toward going public by transitioning into a public entity.

Hood, a pseudonymous social networking platform, has pivoted to a matchmaking platform under a new brand, KnotDating.

Agri-value chain enabler Samunnati has raised Rs 2,300 crore in debt during  FY25 and onboarded 12 new lenders including SBI, Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), Federal Bank, Kotak Mahindra Bank.

Managed workplace solutions company, IndiQube, has secured approval from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) for its initial public offerings (IPOs).