IPO-bound Infra.Market has raised INR 1,050 Cr ($121 Mn) in its pre-IPO round at a valuation of about $2.8 Bn (INR 24,150 Cr), a jump of over 10% from its valuation of $2.5 Bn during the previous funding round, sources told Inc42.

The fundraise, termed as its Series F round, saw participation from existing investors Tiger Global, Foundamental GmbH, Evolvence, among others. Nikhil Kamath, Ashish Kacholia, Abhijit Pai, Sumeet Kanwar, Nuvama, and Capri Global were also part of the round. 

Notably, Kamath, Capri Global, Kanwar and Kacholia acquired stakes in RDC Concrete, a subsidiary of Infra.Market which was looking to go public, last year. However, the startup changed its plans and decided to go for an initial public offering (IPO) of Infra.Market. 

Infra.Market declined to comment on Inc42’s queries on the latest funding round and its IPO plans.

In August last year, it was reported that Infra.Market was eyeing an IPO of $500 Mn to $700 Mn and had roped in Kotak Mahindra Capital, IIFL Capital, Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, ICICI Securities, HSBC Securities, Motilal Oswal Financial Services, and Nuvama Wealth Management as the bankers for the public issue.

With the fresh funding, the startup is all set to file its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), the sources added. 

Founded in 2016 by Aaditya Sharda and Souvik Sengupta, Infra.Market manufactures construction materials under its private-label brands. It has a B2B, retail, and B2C network and leverages technology to digitise the procurement process.

On the financial front, its net profit surged 144% to INR 378 Cr in FY24 from INR 155  Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue zoomed 23% to INR 14,530 Cr from INR 11,846.5 Cr in FY23.

The increase in revenue came on the back of the increasing number of private label brands in its portfolio. 

Infra.Market primarily earns revenue by selling construction materials, including cement, paints, chemicals, and tools. Its total revenue stood at INR 14,743.4 Cr in FY24, up 25% from INR 11,890.8 Cr in the previous year. 

The startup operates more than 260 manufacturing units. Of these, more than 200 units are for concrete production, and it has a total capacity of over 20 Mn cubic metres annually. Besides, the startup has more than 16 factories in Morbi in Gujarat for manufacturing tiles, with a total annual capacity of 60 Mn square metres, and 7 facilities for walling blocks with a capacity of 2.4 Mn cubic metres.

Overall, Infra.Market has raised a total funding of over $800 Mn to date.

The post Exclusive: Infra.Market Bags INR 1,050 Cr In Pre-IPO Round At $2.8 Bn Valuation appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Cold-chain marketplace Celcius Logistics is in advanced discussions with investors to raise around INR 125 Cr (about $14.5 Mn) in its Series B funding round.

The round will see participation from agritech focus venture fund Omnivore, sources told Inc42.  Besides, a Europe-based VC firm is participating in the round. Existing investor IvyCap Ventures is also likely to be a part of the funding round.

The funding round is likely to be announced in a couple of weeks. Celcius declined to comment on Inc42’s queries on the development. 

Founded in 2020 by Swarup Bose, Rajneesh Raman, and Arbind Jain, Celcius offers a digital platform to users to avail end-to-end supply chain solutions. The platform centralises bookings and helps collate all the data in a single system.

It will use the fresh capital to enhance its transportation management system (TMS) and warehouse management system (WMS), the sources quoted above said.

Celcius last raised INR 40 Cr (about $4.7 Mn) in its pre-Series B funding round led by existing investor IvyCap Ventures. The round also saw participation from Mumbai Angels and Caret Capital, and Indonesia-based Sinaramas. 

It counts the likes of Zepto, Zomato, Maersk, Prabhat Dairy, Baskin Robbins, Vadilal, Domino’s, Keventers, and Godrej Agrovet among its clients. Currently, the startup has 4,000 vehicles, 107 cold storage facilities, 27 distribution centres, and 200 hyperlocal riders across the country. 

Celcius claims to have transported more than 1.25 Lakh tonnes of perishable goods for various sectors, including dairy, fresh agricultural produce, pharmaceuticals, fruits, seafood, and vaccines. It currently operates across more than 350 cities in the country and plans to expand its presence to more than 500 cities by the end of 2025.

Celcius has also ventured into cross-border trade, facilitating the export and import of exotic fruits and seafood.

Operating across more than 350 cities in India, Celcius has also ventured into cross-border trade, facilitating the export and import of exotic fruits and seafood.

The startup intends to expand its presence to more than 500 cities by the end of 2025. 

The post Exclusive: Celcius In Talks To Raise INR 125 Cr From Omnivore, Others appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The world’s third largest startup ecosystem has been in the midst of a raging funding winter for a couple of years now. As investors tightened their purse strings, the Indian startup ecosystem has had to go through a lot of pain, which included thousands of employees losing their jobs. 

This was especially true for the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), when the funding drought peaked. Far from the capital boom of 2021, when fear of missing out (FOMO) among investors drove a valuation bubble, FY23 and FY24 turned out to be a reality check for the startup ecosystem as many shut shop while others took the debt route to extend their runways. 

However, not everything was doom and gloom. The struggle of the funding winter brought with it sanity in valuations and forced startups to cut their expenses to chart a profitable growth. This trend was evident in the financial statements of Indian startups in FY23 and seems to have continued in FY24 as well.

Of the 98 startups that have released their financial statements for FY24 so far, 42 ended the year with profitable numbers. Their cumulative profit stood at INR 5,079.2 Cr. 

The likes of Zomato, PB Fintech, Honasa, and Milk Mantra turned profitable during the year under review.

Meanwhile, the remaining 56 startups posted a cumulative loss of INR 23,083 Cr, with just Paytm and Ola Electric accounting for more than INR 3,000 Cr of this loss figure. However, it needs to be highlighted that many of these startups were also able to cut their losses in FY24.

In terms of top line, the 98 startups posted a cumulative operating revenue of INR 1.98 Lakh Cr (INR 1,98,207.76 Cr to be precise) in the year ended March 2024. 

So, without further ado, let’s take a look at the financial performance of some of these startups in FY24. 

Editor’s Note: This list is not a ranking of any kind, we have placed the companies alphabetically. This is a running list and will be updated periodically.

Inside The FY24 Financials Of Indian Startups

Note: All amount in INR Cr

ACKO’s Net Loss Narrows 9%

ACKO managed to trim its consolidated net loss by 9% to INR 669.98 Cr in FY24 from INR 738.55 Cr in the previous year, on the back of a strong growth in its top line and improvement in EBITDA margin.

The digital insurance policy provider clocked sales of INR 2,106.25 Cr in FY24, a 20% jump from INR 1,758.64 Cr in the previous year.

Including other income, the startup’s total revenue rose 20% to INR 2,160.20 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,796.81 Cr in FY23.

Total expenditure grew to INR 2,830.18 Cr in the year ended March 2024 from INR 2,535.36 Cr last year.

Read More: ACKO’s Revenue Jumps 20% To Cross INR 2,000 Cr Mark In FY24

Amagi’s Loss Declines 24% 

SaaS unicorn Amagi’s consolidated net loss declined 23.72% to INR 245 Cr in FY24 from INR 321.2 Cr in FY23, due to improvement in its EBITDA margin.

The company saw strong business growth, with its operating revenue rising 29.18% to INR 879.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 680.5 Cr in FY23.

Despite the strong revenue growth, Amagi’s total expenditure increased only 13.43% to INR 1,179.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,039.5 Cr in FY23.

Read More: SaaS Unicorn Amagi’s FY24 Loss Declines 24% To INR 245 Cr

Avanse’s Profit Crosses INR 300 Cr Mark

IPO-bound non-banking financial company Avanse Financial Services posted a profit of INR 342.4 Cr in FY24, a jump of 117% from INR 157.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Operating revenue also jumped 74.5% to INR 1,727 Cr in FY24 from INR 989.6 Cr in the previous year. 

Its IPO will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 1,000 Cr and an offer for sale (OFS) component of shares worth up to INR 2,500 Cr. It plans to use the IPO proceeds to increase its capital base to fuel further expansion of its business.

Read More: IPO-Bound Avanse’s PAT Doubles To INR 342.4 Cr In FY24, Operating Revenue Surges 74%

Ather Energy’s Loss Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

IPO-bound Ather Energy’s operating revenue declined 1.5% to INR 1,753.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,780.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. On the other hand, its net loss widened over 22% to INR 1,059.7 Cr from INR 864.5 Cr in FY23.

Total expenses in FY24 stood at INR 2,674.2 Cr, rising marginally from INR 2,666.3 Cr in the previous year.

Read More: Ather Energy FY24: Revenue Declines On Reduction In FAME-II Subsidy, Loss Up 22% To INR 1,060 Cr

Awfis’ Loss Narrows 

Coworking space startup Awfis managed to reduce its loss to INR 17.75 Cr in FY24, a 62% decline from INR 46.6 Cr in the previous year. Though the startup was in loss for the entire fiscal year, it turned profitable in Q4 FY24. It posted a profit of INR 1.4 Cr in Q4 FY24. 

In terms of revenue, Awfis’ operating revenue jumped 55.6% to INR 848.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 545.2 Cr in the previous year. In Q4 FY24, the startup’s operating revenue jumped over 45% YoY to INR 232.4 Cr. 

Awfis went public in May this year. Its IPO comprised a fresh issue of shares worth INR 128 Cr and an OFS component of up to 1.23 Cr shares. Peak XV Partners and Bisque Limited were among the investors who sold shares via the OFS. 

Read More: Awfis Turns Profitable In Q4 With INR 1.4 Cr PAT, Operating Revenue Jumps 45% YoY

BlackBuck’s Loss Falls Below INR 200 Cr Mark

IPO-bound BlackBuck managed to lower its loss by over 30% in the financial year ended March 31, 2024. The logistics startup incurred a net loss of INR 194 Cr, a decline of 33% from INR 290.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The Flipkart-backed startup’s operating revenue zoomed 69% to INR 296.9 Cr in FY24 from INR 175.6 Cr in FY23. It primarily earns revenue by offering payments services, telematics, load marketplace, and vehicle financing services on its platform. 

The logistics unicorn’s IPO will comprise a fresh issue of shares worth INR 550 Cr and an OFS component of up to 2.16 Cr shares (2,16,09,022 to be precise). 

Read More: IPO-Bound BlackBuck Narrows Loss By 33% To INR 194 Cr In FY24

BlueStone’s Loss Narrows By 15% To INR 142 Cr

Omnichannel jewellery brand BlueStone managed to narrow its loss by almost 15% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 142.2 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 167.2 Cr in the previous year. 

Its operating revenue surpassed the INR 1,000 Cr mark during the year under review. Revenue from operations surged over 64% to INR 1,265.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 770.7 Cr in the previous year. 

Total expenditure rose 51.4% to INR 1,445.7 Cr from INR 955.1 Cr in FY23.

Read More: BlueStone FY24: Revenue Surpasses INR 1,000 Cr Mark, Loss Narrows 15% To INR 142.2 Cr

boAt’s Revenue Slips 

Aman Gupta-led boAt saw its operating revenue fall 7% to INR 3,117.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 3,376.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Despite the decline in its revenue, the startup managed to narrow its loss by over 38% to INR 79.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 129.4 Cr in FY23.

The audio consumer brand’s expenses fell over 9% to INR 3,233.6 Cr from INR 3,562.1 Cr in FY23.

Read More: boAt’s FY24 Revenue Declines 7% To INR 3,118 Cr

Bombay Shaving Company’s Loss Narrows 

Shantanu Despande-led D2C grooming and personal care brand Bombay Shaving Company’s net loss declined 23% to INR 62.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 80 Cr in the previous fiscal year, as its top line rose and margins improved.

Operating revenue breached the INR 200 Cr mark during the year under review. Revenue from operations rose 26% to INR 204 Cr from INR 161.8 Cr in FY23.

The rise in the startup’s expenditure was lower than the increase in its revenue. Its total expenses grew 13% to INR 295.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 262.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Bombay Shaving Company’s FY24 Loss Declines To INR 62 Cr

BookMyShow’s Profit Breaches INR 100 Cr Mark

Online ticketing platform BookMyShow’s net profit zoomed 27.61% to INR 108.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 85.1 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The Mumbai-based company reported an operating revenue of INR 1,396.8 Cr in FY24, up 44% from INR 975.5 Cr in FY23.

The live events segment saw its revenue nearly double to INR 454.7 Cr from INR 237.5 Cr in FY23, on the back of rising trend of live shows in the country. The online ticketing segment brought in INR 740.7 Cr in revenue.

Read More: BookMyShow Profit Jumps 27% To INR 109 Cr In FY24

CaratLane’s Revenue Breaches INR 3,000 Cr Mark

The Tata-owned omnichannel jewellery startup reported a 42% jump in its operating revenue to INR 3,080 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,169 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

However, net profit declined nearly 5% to INR 78.59 Cr during the under review from INR 82.08 Cr in FY23 due to rise in advertising and “miscellaneous” expenses. 

CaratLane FY24: Profit Declines 5% To INR 79 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 3,000 Cr Mark

CarTrade’s Profit Halves 

Used car marketplace startup CarTrade saw its profit fall 50% to INR 20 Cr in FY24 from INR 40 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The decline in the loss could be attributed to the startup’s acquisition of Sobek Auto India, comprising OLX Autos C2B business and OLX classifieds business, for INR 535.54 Cr.

CarTrade reported an operating revenue of INR 489.9 Cr in FY24 as against INR 363.7 Cr in the previous year.  

Read More: CarTrade Back In The Black With INR 25 Cr PAT In Q4; Revenue Jumps 38% YoY

Chaayos Loss Reduces By 51%

Popular QSR chain Chaayos reduced its net loss by 50.59% to INR 54 Cr in FY24 from INR 109.3 Cr in FY23, as it cut its expenses and turned EBITDA profitable.

Chaayos’ operating revenue rose a mere 4.89% to INR 248.6 Cr during the year under review from INR 237 Cr in FY23. Including other income, total revenue grew 7% to INR 271.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 253.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Chaayos managed to reduce its total expenditure by 3.69% to INR 352.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 365.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Chaayos’ Loss Halves To INR 54 Cr In FY24

Cleartrip’s Loss Crosses INR 800 Cr Mark

Flipkart-owned online travel aggregator Cleartrip’s net loss jumped 18.5% to INR 810.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 683.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year, despite a surge in its top line. 

Cleartrip’s operating revenue almost doubled to INR 97.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 49.4 Cr in FY23. Its revenue would have been INR 622.2 Cr if not for discounts. The company gave INR 524.9 Cr worth of discounts in FY24 as against INR 441.1 Cr in the previous fiscal. 

Cleartrip’s expenses during the period under review jumped 26.7% to INR 988.2 Cr from INR 780.1 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Flipkart-Owned Cleartrip Spent INR 10 To Earn Every Rupee In FY24

Curefoods Net Loss Reduced To INR 173 Cr

Bengaluru-based cloud kitchen startup Curefoods reduced its net loss by 49.64% to INR 172.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 342.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year, as its top line surged and margins improved.

The startup’s operating revenue zoomed 53.17% to INR 585.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 382 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The startup’s expenses grew only 6.97% to INR 806.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 754.2 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Curefoods’ FY24 Loss Halves To INR 173 Cr

Delhivery’s Loss Narrows By 75% 

Delhi NCR-based Delhivery posted a 75% decrease in its loss in FY24. The logistics unicorn reported a loss of INR 249 Cr during the year as against INR 1,007 Cr in FY23. 

Operating revenue stood at INR 8,141 Cr in FY24, an increase of 12.6% from INR 7,225 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The startup also reduced its advertising expenses to INR 16 Cr from INR 22 Cr in FY24. 

Read More: After A Profitable Q3, Delhivery Posts INR 69 Cr Loss In Q4 FY24

DealShare’s Revenue Plummets 75%

The Delhi NCR-headquartered startup’s operating revenue plunged nearly 75% to INR 499 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,963.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

In line with the fall in revenue, DealShare managed to lower its net loss by 67% to INR 167.7 Cr from INR 503 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

In a bid to improve its bottom line, DealShare cut its expenditure by 70% to INR 768.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,557.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: DealShare’s FY24 Revenue Plummets 75% To INR 500 Cr

DevX Turns Profitable In FY24

IPO-bound coworking space provider DevX posted a net profit of INR 43.7 Lakh in FY24 as against a net loss of INR 12.83 Cr in the previous fiscal. 

The startup’s operating revenue zoomed 55% to INR 108.08 Cr during the year under review from INR 69.91 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The coworking space provider’s total expenses rose 37% to INR 119.50 Cr in FY24 from INR 87.49 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: IPO-Bound DevX Posts INR 44 Lakh Profit In FY24

Dezerv’s Revenue Surges 157%

Accel-backed wealthtech startup Dezerv’s operating revenue surged 157% to INR 26.25 Cr in FY24 from INR 10.20 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Despite the growth in its top line, Dezerv’s consolidated net loss rose 95% to INR 74.53 Cr during the year under review from INR 38.20 Cr in FY23, on account of a sharp increase in its expenses.

Dezerv’s total expenditure shot up 108% year-on-year to INR 100.84 Cr in the year ended March 31, 2024. It had incurred expenses of INR 48.42 Cr in the previous year.

Read More: Dezerv’s FY24 Revenue Zooms 157% YoY To INR 26 Cr

DroneAcharya’s Profit Doubles

Pune-based drone startup DroneAcharya Aerial Innovations reported a consolidated profit after tax (PAT) of INR 6.2 Cr in FY24, almost double of INR 3.42 Cr profit it posted in the previous fiscal year.

DroneAcharya’s operating revenue increased nearly 90% to INR 35.19 Cr in FY24 from INR 18.56 Cr in FY23. The startup attributed this increase to the company’s steady and consistent growth as a drone solution provider and a drone training organisation.

Read More: DroneAcharya’s Net Profit Doubles To INR 6.2 Cr In FY24, Operating Revenue Jumps 90%

EaseMyTrip’s Revenue Inches Closer To INR 600 Cr Mark

Online ticketing platform EaseMyTrip saw its revenue rise 32% to INR 591 Cr from INR 488.8 Cr in FY23, driven by an increase in sales of air tickets. 

Despite the increase in revenue, the startup’s profit took a hit. EaseMyTrip’s profit fell 23% to INR 103.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 134 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Increase in advertising expenses was among the reasons for the decrease in profit.

Read More: EaseMyTrip Q4: Incurs Loss Of INR 15 Cr Due To One-Time Expenses

Ecom Express Sees Its Loss Decline 67%

IPO-bound logistics startup Ecom Express managed to reduce its net loss by 67% to INR 255.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 428.1 Cr in FY23.

The startup’s operating revenue saw a marginal 2.15% increase to INR 2,609 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,553.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year, as per its DRHP. Total expenses rose marginally by 0.64% to INR 2,921.5 Cr in  FY24, from INR 2,902.8 Cr.

Read More: Ecom Express FY24: IPO-Bound Startup’s Loss Narrows 67% To INR 255.8 Cr

ElasticRun’s Revenue Plummets 49%

Elasticrun reported a 49% decline in its operating revenue to INR 2,434.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 4,738.0 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

In line with the decrease in revenue, net loss fell 42% to INR 359.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 619.0 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

ElasticRun generates revenue through the sale of products and services. Revenue from the sale of products stood at INR 2,023.19 Cr in FY24, a sharp decline from INR 4,366.11 Cr in FY23. However, revenue from the sale of services increased 10.3% to INR 406.30 Cr from INR 368.34 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The Pune-based startup’s total expenditure fell 47% to INR 2,904.4 Cr from INR 5,452.8 Cr in FY23

Read More: ElasticRun’s FY24 Revenue Narrows To Half, Loss Declines 42%

Fasal’s Revenue Surges Nearly 90%

Agritech startup Fasal’s revenue from operations grew 89% to INR 34.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 18 Cr in FY23. Including other income, Fasal’s total revenue grew nearly 90% to INR 35.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 18.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Meanwhile, total expenses rose 34% to INR 69.5 Cr during the year under review from INR 51.6 Cr in FY23. 

Loss increased 6% to INR 34 Cr from INR 32 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Agritech Startup Fasal’s FY24 Revenue Jumps 89% to INR 34.1 Cr

Fino Payments Bank’s Profit Jumps Over 30%

Mumbai-based Fino Payments Bank’s operating revenue jumped 20% to INR 1,478.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,229.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Its expenses also grew almost in line with revenue. Total expenses stood at INR 1,391.5 Cr in FY24, up 19% from INR 1,164.8Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Fino’s net profit zoomed 32% to INR 86.2 Cr from INR 65 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Fino Payments Bank Q4: Net Profit Rises 14% YoY To INR 25.21 Cr

FirstCry’s Loss Declines Over 30% 

Ahead of its IPO, kids-focussed omnichannel retailer FirstCry managed to reduce its net loss by 34% to INR 321.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 486 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Its operating revenue increased 15% to INR 6,480.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 5,632.5 Cr in FY23. Expenses rose 9.2% to INR 6,896.6 Cr from INR 6,315.7 Cr in FY23. 

FirstCry made its public market debut in August. Its shares listed at INR 651 on the NSE, a premium of 40% over its issue price of INR 549.

Read More: FirstCry FY24: Loss Narrows 34%, Revenue Crosses INR 6K Cr Mark Ahead Of IPO

Freo’s Loss Narrows 65%

Freo narrowed its net loss by 64.54% to INR 14.16 Cr in FY24 from INR 39.94 Cr in the previous year, on the back of improvement in its EBITDA margin. 

Revenue from operations rose 11% to INR 111.46 Cr in the financial year ended March 2024 from INR 99.80 Cr in the previous year. 

The digital banking startup managed to bring down its expenses by 10.28% to INR 125.58 Cr from INR 139.97 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Freo’s FY24 Loss Declines 65% To INR 14 Cr

Furlenco’s Sales Dip

The Bengaluru-based furniture rental startup’s operating revenue declined 10.4% to INR 139.56 Cr in FY24 from INR 155.78 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Furlenco also managed to lower its loss by 2.3% to INR 129.97 Cr in FY24 from INR 127.04 Cr in FY23.

Total expenditure declined 1.3% to INR 282.1 Cr from INR 285.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Furlenco’s FY24 Operating Revenue Declines 10%, Net Loss Down 2.3%

Gramophone’s Revenue Plunges

Gramophone’s operating revenue slumped 69% to INR 98.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 315.7 Cr in the previous year, as the startup shuttered its marketplace business during the year under review. 

This also led to its expenditure falling 64% to INR 133.4 Cr from INR 374 Cr in FY23. As a result, the startup’s net loss declined 40% to INR 34.8 Cr from INR 57.9 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: Gramophone’s FY24 Revenue Slumps 69% To INR 98 Cr

Go Digit’s Profit Zooms 5X

Insurtech startup Go Digit posted strong results with a 400% jump in its profit after tax (PAT) to INR 182 Cr in FY24 from INR 36 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

With the sharp growth in health, travel, and personal accident premiums, Go Digit’s total gross written premium (GWP) increased 24.5% to INR 9,016 Cr from INR 7,243 Cr in FY23.

Net earned premium rose over 37% to INR 7,096 Cr in FY24 from INR 5,164 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Go Digit FY24: PAT Jumps Over 5X To INR 182 Cr, GWP At INR 9,016 Cr

HealthKart Becomes Profitable

Delhi NCR-based HealthKart, which bagged a funding of $153 Mn in November 2024, turned profitable in FY24, posting a net profit of INR 38.3 Cr in FY24 as against a net loss of INR 164.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The startup’s sales rose 23% to INR 1,021.5 Cr during the year under review from INR 832.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Total expenditure saw a marginal 1% rise to INR 1,031 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,016 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: HealthKart Turns Profitable, Posts INR 38 Cr PAT In FY24

Infra.Market’s Profit Crosses INR 350 Cr Mark

Mumbai-based Infra.Market reported a profit of INR 378 Cr in FY24, an increase of 144% from INR 155 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The IPO-bound startup’s operating revenue increased 23% to INR 14,530 Cr from INR 11,846.5 Cr in the previous year. 

In line with the increase in sales, total expenditure grew 23% to INR 14,272 Cr from INR 11,607.6 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Infra.Market’s FY24 Profit Crosses INR 350 Cr, Sales Breach INR 14K Cr Mark

Jar’s Loss Narrows To INR 104 Cr

Wealthtech startup Jar narrowed its net loss by 15% to INR 103.97 Cr in FY24 from INR 123 Cr in the previous year, as revenue grew and expenses declined. 

Revenue from operations skyrocketed 461% to INR 49.03 Cr in FY24 from INR 8.73 Cr in the last fiscal (FY23).

Including other income of INR 7.37 Cr, total revenue surged 277% to INR 56.41 Cr during the year under review from INR 14.93 Cr in the previous year.

Jar’s total expenses for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024 increased 16.2% to INR 160.3 Cr from INR 137.5 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Jar Cuts FY24 Loss To INR 104 Cr

Juspay’s Loss Declines 8% 

Fintech company Juspay’s net loss narrowed 7.7% to INR 97.54 Cr in FY24 from INR 105.75 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

It posted a 49.6% rise in operating revenue to INR 319.32 Cr from INR 213.39 Cr in FY23. 

Total expenses climbed 29.5% to INR 443.74 Cr in FY24 from INR 342.59 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Juspay Trims Net Loss To INR 97.54 Cr In FY24

Lenskart’s Revenue Crosses INR 5,000 Cr Mark

Peyush Bansal-led Lenskart saw its sales jump 43% to INR 5,427.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 3,788 Cr in FY23. 

Including other income, total revenue rose 43% to INR 5,609.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 3,927.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Lenskart managed to reduce its net loss by 84% to INR 10 Cr in FY24 from INR 64 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Lenskart’s FY24 Loss Declines 84% To INR 10 Cr

Kuku FM’s Revenue Inches Closer To INR 100 Cr Mark

Kuku FM saw its operating revenue increase over 100% in FY24. Revenue from operations zoomed 114% to INR 88 Cr from INR 41.1 Cr in FY23.

The IFC-backed startup saw its expenditure increase 21% to INR 200 Cr in FY24 from INR 165.4 Cr in the last fiscal year.

It also managed to bring down its loss. Net loss stood at INR 96 Cr in FY24, down 18% from INR 116.5 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Kuku FM’s FY24 Revenue Jumps 114% To INR 104 Cr

ideaForge’s Profit Nears INR 50 Cr Mark 

ideaForge reported its third consecutive profitable fiscal as the drone maker clocked a net profit of INR 47.8 Cr in the fiscal ended March 2024. This was an increase of almost 50% from INR 31.9 Cr. Its profit stood at INR 44 Cr in FY22. 

Operating revenue also soared more than 70% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 186 Cr during the year under review.

Meanwhile, expenses zoomed 81% to INR 282.9 Cr in FY24 from INR 155.6 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: ideaForge PAT Slips 30% QoQ To INR 10.3 Cr In Q4

iD Fresh Foods Turns Profitable

The Bengaluru-based read-to-eat food maker turned profitable in FY24, posting a net profit of INR 1.84 Cr as against a loss of INR 23.25 Cr in FY23. 

iD Fresh Foods clocked a 16% increase in its operating revenue to INR 395.76 Cr in FY24 from INR 340.9 Cr in the previous year. 

Total expenditure grew 8.4% to INR 398.75 Cr during the year under review from INR 367.94 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: iD Fresh Food Turns Profitable In FY24, Posts INR 1.8 Cr PAT

InCred’s Profit Surges 2.6X 

The fintech startup’s operating revenue crossed the INR 1,000 Cr mark during the year under review. InCred saw its top line grow nearly 47% to INR 1,270 Cr in FY24 from INR 864.6 Cr in FY23.

Meanwhile, profit soared 162% to INR 316.3 Cr from INR 120.9 Cr in FY23. Rising finance costs and employee benefit expenses pushed up InCred’s total expenses by over 37% YoY to INR 871.3 Cr during the fiscal year under review. 

Read More: InCred FY24: Profit More Than Doubles To INR 316.3 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

IndiaMART’s Revenue Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

The B2B ecommerce major posted a 17% rise in its net profit to INR 334 Cr in FY24 from INR 283 Cr in the year-ago period. 

Operating revenue jumped 21% to INR 1,196 Cr in the fiscal ended March 2024 from INR 985 Cr in FY23. On similar lines, total expenses also rose 20% to INR 910.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 756.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. This increase in expenditure was largely attributable to a sharp jump in employee benefit costs, which rose 27% YoY to INR 507 Cr during the year under review. 

Read More: IndiaMART Q4: Profit Surges 78% YoY To INR 99.6 Cr

IPO-Bound IndiQube’s Loss Widens By 72%

IndiQube’s net loss widened 72% to INR 341.51 Cr in FY24 from INR 198.10 Cr in the previous year, primarily due to a sharp increase in loss on fair valuation of financial liabilities.

However, revenue from operations surged 44% to INR 867.66 Cr during the year under review from INR 601.28 Cr in FY23.

The IPO-bound managed office space provider saw its total expenses zoom 51% to INR 1,252.48 Cr during the year under review from INR 829.20 Cr in FY23.

Read More: IPO-Bound IndiQube’s Loss Widens 72% To INR 341.5 Cr In FY24

InsuranceDekho Turns Profitable

Auto marketplace CarDekho’s insurance arm InsuranceDekho turned profitable in FY24 on the back of a multifold jump in revenue. The startup reported a net profit of INR 85.7 Cr during the fiscal year under review compared to a loss of INR 51.6 Cr in FY23. 

Operating revenue zoomed 670% to INR 743.6 Cr from INR 96.5 Cr in FY23. The startup’s total expenditure also rose 360% to INR 699.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 151.9 Cr in the precious fiscal year. 

Read More: InsuranceDekho Turns Profitable, Posts INR 86 Cr PAT In FY24

ixigo’s Profit Triples 

Online travel aggregator ixigo had a bumper year as its net profit more than tripled to INR 73.1 Cr from INR 23.4 Cr in FY23. 

The travel tech major’s operating revenue increased almost 31% to INR 655.9 Cr in the reported fiscal year from INR 501.2 Cr in FY23. This came largely on the back of broad-based growth across its business verticals and healthy uptick in annual active users. 

Total expenditure jumped almost 30% YoY to INR 627.8 Cr in FY24.

Le Travenues Technology, the parent company of the travel tech startup, made a stellar debut on the stock exchanges in June 2024 and listed at INR 138.10 per share on the BSE, a 48.5% premium from the issue price of INR 93. 

Read More: ixigo FY24: Profit Jumps Over 200% To INR 73.1 Cr, Train Bookings Biggest Revenue Source

Josh Talks Trims Loss By 25%

Delhi NCR-based media and entertainment startup Josh Talks pruned its loss by 25% in FY24 to INR 9.88 Cr from INR 13.21 Cr loss it incurred in the previous fiscal year.

Revenue from operations rose 2% to INR 18.71 Cr from INR 18.29 Cr in FY23. Including other income of INR 65.40 Lakh, the startup’s total revenue for the fiscal stood at INR 19.37 Cr. This number was 3% higher than the INR 18.80 Cr total revenue for FY23. 

The startup also managed to lower its total expenditure by 9% to INR 29.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 32 Cr. 

Read More: Josh Talks FY24: Losses Come Down 25% To INR 9.8 Cr, Revenue Up 2%

LeadSquared’s Revenue Rises 9%

WestBridge Capital-backed SaaS startup LeadSquared reported a marginal 0.73% increase in its net loss to INR 162.24 Cr in FY24 from INR 161.06 Cr in the previous year.

Operating revenue rose 9.12% to INR 279.29 Cr during the year under review from INR 255.93 Cr in FY23. Including other income of INR 45.9 Cr, the Bengaluru-based startup’s total revenue jumped 9.77% year-on-year to INR 325.2 Cr.

LeadSquared’s overall expenses rose 6.6% to INR 486.45 Cr during the year ended March 31, 2024 from INR 456.21 Cr in the previous year.

Read More: SaaS Unicorn LeadSquared Posts INR 162 Cr Loss In FY24

Lendingkart’s Profit Declines 97%

Lendingtech startup Lendingkart reported a 97.2% decline in its consolidated net profit to INR 3.25 Cr in FY24 from INR 118.8 Cr in FY24, primarily due to a sharp increase in impairment loss on financial assets, loans and advances.

However, operating revenue zoomed 36.6% to INR 1,090.6 Cr during the year under review from INR 798.4 Cr in the previous year.

Lendinkart’s total expenses rose 58.92% to INR 1,194.3 Cr during the year ended March 31, 2024 from INR 751.5 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: Lendingkart FY24: Profit Declines 97% To INR 3.25 Cr

Mamaearth Turns Profitable In FY24

Honasa Consumer Ltd, the parent entity of D2C unicorn Mamaearth, returned to the black during the year under review. After posting a net loss of INR 150.9 Cr in FY23, the startup minted a profit of INR 110.5 Cr in FY24. 

Operating revenue rose 28.6% to INR 1,919.9 Cr from INR 1,492.7 Cr in FY23. Total expenditure jumped 21.3% to INR 1,822.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,501.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Honasa FY24: Mamaearth Parent Turns Profitable For Full Fiscal Year

MapmyIndia’s Profit Jumps 25% 

Geotech company MapmyIndia reported a profit of INR 134.4 Cr in FY24, up 25% from INR 107.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Operating revenue rose more than 34% to INR 379 in the year ended March 2024 from INR 281 Cr in FY23. Meanwhile, total expenditure increased 36% YoY to INR 240.9 Cr on the back of a sharp rise in other expenses, which rose 73%.

Read More: MapmyIndia’s Q4 PAT Jumps 35% YoY To INR 38 Cr

Milk Mantra Back In The Black

Bhubaneswar-based dairy tech startup Milk Mantra turned profitable in FY24, posting a net profit of INR 9.8 Cr as against a net loss of INR 12.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. It is pertinent to note that the startup slipped into the red for the first time in FY23 after eight straight years of profitability. 

Operating revenue stood at INR 276.4 Cr in FY24, a marginal increase of 1.3% from INR 272.9 Cr in FY23.

 In terms of expenditure, the startup’s total cost fell a little over 7% to INR 269.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 289.5 Cr in the previous year. 

Read More: Milk Mantra Back In The Black With INR 9.8 Cr Profit In FY24, But Growth Remains Muted

Minimalist’s Profit Jumps 2X In FY24

D2C skincare brand Minimalist’s net profit more than doubled to INR 10.9 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 5.2 Cr in FY23, on the back of a strong growth in its top line.

The Rajasthan-based startup’s revenue from operations surged 89% to INR 347.4 Cr during the year under review from INR 183.8 Cr in FY23.

Expenditure rose largely in line with the growth in its sales. Total expenses jumped 84% to INR 331.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 180.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: D2C Brand Minimalist’s FY24 Profit Doubles To INR 10.9 Cr, Revenue Up 1.9X YoY

Mintifi’s Profit Jumps 273%

Supply-chain financing startup Mintifi’s net profit zoomed 273% to INR 92.53 Cr in FY24 from INR 24.79 Cr in the previous year on the back of robust growth in its topline and improvement in margins.

Revenue from operations surged nearly 72% to INR 383.67 Cr during the year under review from INR 223.20 Cr in FY23. Including other income of INR 17.80 Cr, total revenue climbed almost 77% year-on-year to INR 401.47 Cr in the year ended March 31, 2024.

Mintifi’s total expenses also rose sharply to INR 276.68 Cr in FY24, up nearly 44% from 192.35 Cr a year ago

Read More: Mintifi’s FY24 Profit Zooms 273% To INR 92.5 Cr

Mokobara Halves Its Loss

D2C luggage startup Mokobara’s loss nearly halved to INR 4.24 Cr in FY24. It had posted a loss of INR 8.22 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Revenue from operations jumped 120% to INR 117.44 Cr from INR 53.27 Cr it reported in FY23. Total expenditure nearly doubled to INR 123.28 Cr from INR 61.85 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Mokobara’s Revenue Surges 2.2X To INR 117 Cr In FY24

Myntra Turns Profitable 

Fashion ecommerce giant Myntra turned profitable in the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), posting a consolidated net profit of INR 30.9 Cr as against a loss of INR 782.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The profitability came on the back of a bump in Myntra’s topline and slight reduction in its expenses in the fiscal. 

The startup’s revenue from operations stood at INR 5,121.8 Cr in FY24, up about 15% from the INR 4,465 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Myntra cut its expenses slightly to turn profitable in the fiscal. In FY24, the startup spent INR 5,123 Cr, down 3% from the INR 5,290.1 Cr it spent in the prior fiscal.

Read More: Myntra Turns Profitable In FY24, Revenue Soars 15%

Navi Finserv’s Operating Revenue Takes Hit 

Navi Finserv’s consolidated operating revenue fell 6.6% to INR 1,906.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,040.6 Cr in FY23. The startup’s profit from continued operations also slipped 41% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 155.6 Cr in FY24. 

It is pertinent to mention that Navi Finserv divested its entire holding in microfinance subsidiary Chaitanya India Fin Credit Private Ltd during the year under review. Including profit from discontinued operations, its net profit more than doubled to INR 545.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 264.2 Cr.

Total expenses saw a marginal increase to INR 1,750.4 Cr in the reported year from INR 1,743.9 Cr in FY23, with finance cost alone comprising over 37% of its total spending.

Read More: Navi Finserv FY24: Revenue Falls 6.6% To INR 1,906 Cr, Profit Down 41% YoY

Nazara’s Profit Increases By Over 20% 

Gaming major Nazara Technologies reported an operating revenue of INR 1,138.2 Cr during the year under review. This was an increase of 4.3% from INR 1,091 Cr in FY23. 

Profit jumped 21.7% to INR 74.7 Cr from INR 61.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Nazara’s total expenses stood at INR 1,112.4 Cr in FY24, an increase of 5.7% from INR 1,051.7 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Nazara Q4: Profit Shrinks To INR 18 Lakh, Operating Revenue Declines To INR 266.2 Cr

Nykaa Nearly Doubles Its Profit 

Fashion ecommerce startup Nykaa reported an operating revenue of INR 6,358.6 Cr in FY24, 23.6% higher than INR 5,143.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Its profit increased 89.5% to INR 40 Cr in FY24 from INR 21.1 Cr in FY23. 

The Falguni Nayar-led unicorn’s total expenditure grew 23.5% to INR 6,346.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 5,135.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Nykaa FY24: Despite Q4 Slide, Profit Rises By 80% For Full Fiscal Year

OfBusiness’ Revenue Crosses INR 19,000 Cr Mark

B2B marketplace OfBusiness’ consolidated operating revenue surged over 25% to INR 19,296.3 Cr FY24 from INR 15,342.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Net profit increased by over 30% to INR 602 Cr from INR 463 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Total expenses jumped 24.3% to INR 18,695.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 15,037.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: OfBusiness FY24: Profit Surges Over 30% To Cross INR 600 Cr Mark

Ola Electric Breaches INR 5,000 Cr Revenue Mark

Recently listed two-wheeler EV startup Ola Electric reported a 90% jump in its revenue to INR 5,010 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,630 Cr in the previous year, on the back of increase in sales of its EV scooters. 

The Bhavish Aggarwal-led startup also managed to cap the increase in loss ahead of its IPO. Its net loss rose 7% to INR 1,584.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,472 Cr in the previous year. Employee benefit expenses increased to INR 439 Cr from INR 427 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: IPO-Bound Ola Electric’s FY24 Net Loss Widens To INR 1,584 Cr, Revenue Jumps 90%

OneCard’s Revenue Crosses INR 1,400 Cr Mark

Peak XV Partners-backed fintech unicorn OneCard’s operating revenue zoomed 163% to INR 1,425.58 Cr in FY24 from INR 541.16 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Including other income of INR 39.19 Cr, total revenue for the fiscal stood at INR 1,464.77 Cr.

The startup incurred a net loss of INR 401.15 Cr in FY24, down 1.1% from INR 405.66 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Expenses also surged during the fiscal year as its top line grew. OneCard spent INR 1,865.92 Cr in FY24, up about 87% from INR 999.51 Cr in the previous fiscal. 

Read More: OneCard’s FY24 Revenue Surges 2.6X To INR 1,425 Cr

OPEN’s Revenue Slumps To INR 25 Cr

Neobanking startup OPEN’s operating revenue declined 17% to INR 24.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 29.9 Cr in FY23.

Including other income, the startup’s total revenue declined 13% to INR 46.1 Cr from INR 53.1 Cr in FY23. 

With the decline in revenue, the Temasek-backed startup’s net loss also reduced 30% to INR 170 Cr during the year under review from INR 242.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Total expenditure fell 34% to INR 194.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 296.5 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: OPEN Spent INR 195 Cr To Earn INR 25 Cr Revenue In FY24

Oxyzo’s Profit Rises To Almost INR 300 Cr

Fintech unicorn Oxyzo, led by couple Ruchi Kalra and Asish Mohapatra, reported a 47% rise in profit to INR 290 Cr in FY24 from INR 198 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Operating revenue zoomed 58% to INR 903.3 Cr from INR 569.9 Cr in FY23. Oxyzo primarily earns revenue from the interest it earns by offering loans to small and medium enterprises.

Read More: Fintech Unicorn Oxyzo’s Profit Zooms 47% To INR 290 Cr In FY24

OYO Turns Profitable With INR 229 Cr PAT As Employee Costs Halve

IPO-bound OYO posted a net profit of INR 229.5 Cr during the year as against a net loss of INR 1,286.5 Cr in the previous financial year. 

However, its operating revenue remained almost flat during the year under review. Revenue from operations stood at INR 5,388.7 Cr in FY24, a decline of 1.3% from INR 5,463.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The startup managed to reduce its total expenditure by 16% to INR 5,725.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 6,799.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: OYO Turns Profitable With INR 229 Cr PAT In FY24 As Employee Costs Halve

Paytm’s Revenue Nears INR 10K Cr Mark

Troubled fintech giant Paytm posted a revenue of INR 9,977.8 Cr in FY24, an increase of 24.8% from INR 7,990.3 Cr in the previous year. It also managed to narrow its loss by 19.3% to INR 1,422.4 Cr from INR 1,775.6 Cr in FY23. 

However, it needs to be mentioned that the Vijay Shekhar Sharma-led company’s revenue is likely to take a hit in FY25 due to the RBI’s crackdown on Paytm Payments Bank. 

Read More: Paytm Q4: Net loss Widens To INR 550 Cr

PB Fintech Operating Revenue Crosses INR 3,000 Cr Mark

PB Fintech, the parent company of insurance tech platform PolicyBazaar, saw its revenue cross the INR 3,000 Cr mark in FY24. Its operating revenue rose 34.4% to INR 3,437.6 Cr during the year under review from INR 2,557.8 Cr in FY23. 

The company also turned profitable, posting a profit of INR 64.61 Cr during the year under review compared to a loss of INR 487.9 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: PB Fintech Stock Goes Through Market Swings After Reporting Profitable Q4 FY24

Perfios Profit Zooms Past 800%

SaaS startup Perfios saw its consolidated net profit jumping 819.2% at INR 71.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 7.8 Cr. Revenue from operations jumped 37.1% to INR 557.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 406.8 Cr in FY23.

In line with the surge in its revenue, Perfios’ total expenses zoomed 28.2% to INR 495.5 Cr in the year ended March 31, 2024 from INR 386.4 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Perfios FY24: Profit Jumps 819% To INR 71.7 Cr

PharmEasy’ Net Loss Halves

Epharmacy PharmEasy saw its consolidated net loss halve to INR 2,531.1 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) on the back of a decline in its expenses and exceptional items. The company’s net loss declined 51.35% from INR 5,202.5 Cr in FY23.

The company, which was hit by financial and operational struggles in the recent past, also saw a 14% decline in operating revenue to INR 5,644 Cr from INR 6,643.9 Cr in FY23. 

Total expenditure declined 19.16% to INR 7,254.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 8,974 Cr in FY23

Read More: PharmEasy’s FY24 Loss Halves To INR 2,531 Cr

PhonePe’s Revenue Breaches INR 5,000 Cr Mark

Walmart-backed fintech giant PhonePe reported an operating revenue of INR 5,064 Cr in FY24, an increase of 74% from INR 2,914 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

It also managed to reduce its net loss by 28% to bring it under INR 2,000 Cr. The company’s net loss stood at INR 1,996 Cr during the year under review as against INR 2,795 Cr a year ago. Excluding share based payment expenses of INR 2,193 Cr, PhonePe posted adjusted profit after tax of INR 197 Cr in FY24 as against a loss of INR 738 Cr in FY23.

Read More: PhonePe Narrows Net Loss To INR 1,996 Cr In FY24

Porter’s Loss Declines 45% To INR 96 Cr 

The Peak XV Partners-backed startup’s loss declined 45% to INR 95.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 174.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue zoomed 56% to INR 2,733.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,737.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The startup’s total expenditure rose 46% to INR 2,862.1 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,964 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Porter FY24: Loss Declines 45% To INR 96 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 2,500 Cr Mark

Purplle’s FY24 Sales Zoom 43% To INR 680 Cr 

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA)-backed unicorn reported an operating revenue of INR 679.6 Cr in FY24, an increase of 43% from INR 475 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Purplle’s total expenditure rose only 15% year-on-year. Its expenses stood at INR 849.6 Cr in FY24 as against INR 738.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Purplle managed to reduce its cash burn during the year under review, as a result of which its net loss plummeted 46% to INR 124.1 Cr from INR 230 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Purplle’s FY24 Sales Zoom 43% To INR 680 Cr, Loss Almost Halves

Rare Rabbit’s Profit Doubles 

Radhamani Textiles, the parent entity of Rare Rabbit, posted a profit of INR 74.5 Cr in FY24, up 131% from INR 32.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year

The apparel brand’s operating revenue zoomed 69% to INR 637 Cr during the year under review from INR 376 Cr in FY23. 

The startup’s expenses also increased. However, the rise in revenue was more than the increase in expenses. Total expenditure rose 60% to INR 542 Cr in FY24 from INR 339 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Rare Rabbit’s FY24 Profit Doubles To INR 75 Cr

RateGain’s Profit More Than Doubles 

Traveltech company RateGain’s consolidated profit after tax jumped 114% to INR 146.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 68.4 Cr in FY23. Its operating revenue zoomed 69% to INR 957 Cr during the year under review from INR 565 Cr in FY23

Employee benefit expenses increased to INR 380 Cr from INR 252.7 Cr in FY23, indicating an increase in employee count. 

Read More: RateGain FY24 Results: Profits More Than Double To INR 146 Cr

Razorpay’s Profit Quadruples 

Peak XV Partners-backed Razorpay posted a profit of INR 33.5 Cr in FY24, an increase of 365% from INR 7.2 Cr in the previous year, as margins improved. 

Operating revenue rose 9% to INR 2,475 Cr from INR 2,283 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Total expenditure stood at INR 2,454.3 Cr, an increase of 7% from INR 2,283.1 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Razorpay’s FY24 Profit Jumps 4.5X To INR 34 Cr

Rebel Foods’ Loss Narrows By 42%

Cloud kitchen unicorn Rebel Foods narrowed its net loss by 42% to INR 378.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 656.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The Faasos-parent trimmed its loss on the back of an increase in its top line and controlled expenses.

Rebel Foods’ operating revenue jumped 19% to INR 1,420.2 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,195.2 Cr in FY23. Total expenses increased marginally by 1.6% to INR 1,857 Cr from INR 1827 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Rebel Foods FY24: Net Loss Nearly Halves To INR 378 Cr, Revenue Up 19% YoY

IPO-Bound Smartworks’ Loss Falls 51% 

IPO-bound coworking space provider Smartworks’ net loss narrowed 51% to INR 49.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 101.02 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The startup, which recently filed its DRHP to raise over INR 550 Cr via its IPO, saw its operating revenue jump 46% to INR 1,039.4 Cr during the year under review from INR 711.4 Cr in FY23. 

Total expenditure increased 34% to INR 1,180.7 Cr from INR 880.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Smartworks DRHP: FY24 Loss Declines 51% To INR 50 Cr, Revenue Crosses INR 1,000 Cr Mark

Swiggy’s FY24 Revenue Crosses INR 10K Mark

IPO-bound Swiggy managed to narrow its loss by 44% to INR 2,350 Cr in FY24 from INR 4,179.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Operating revenue stood at INR 11,247.3 Cr, up 1.3X from INR 8,264.5 Cr in FY23. 

The IPO-bound company managed to control the rise in its expenses during the year. Its total expenditure grew a mere 8% to INR 13,947.3 Cr from INR 12,884.3 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Swiggy DRHP: Revenue Crosses INR 10,000 Cr Mark In FY24, Loss Almost Halves

Shadowfax Trims Loss To INR 12 Cr

IPO-bound Shadowfax slashed its net loss by nearly 92% to INR 11.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 142.6 Cr in the previous year, on the back of an increase in its top line and improvement in margins.

Operating revenue jumped 33.19% to INR 1,884.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,415.1 Cr in the previous year. 

The logistics major’s total expenses rose 21.9% to INR 1,908.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,565.5 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: IPO-Bound Shadowfax’s FY24 Loss Falls 92% To INR 12 Cr

TAC Infosec Reports INR 6 Cr Profit

SaaS cybersecurity startup TAC Infosec reported a net profit of INR 6.33 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), a 23% jump from INR 5.12 Cr in FY23. 

Operating revenue rose 17% to INR 11.84 Cr during the year under review from INR 10.09 Cr in FY23.

Total expenditure for the fiscal stood at INR 5.49 Cr, an increase of 10% from the INR 4.97 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: SaaS Cybersecurity Startup TAC Infosec’s FY24 Profit Rises 23% To INR 6.3 Cr

Tata 1mg Narrows Its Loss By 75% 

The Bengaluru-based startup’s net loss narrowed 75% to INR 313 Cr in FY24 from INR 1,254.8 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

The startup, which primarily earns revenue from sales of medicines, and offering lab and diagnostics test services, saw its operating revenue rise 21% to INR 1,967.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 1,627 Cr in FY23.

It managed to cut its total expenditure by 20% to INR 2,302.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 2,893.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Read More: Tata 1mg FY24: Loss Declines 75% To INR 313 Cr On Business Growth, Fall In Expenses

TBO Tek Posts INR 200 Cr Profit 

B2B travel portal TBO Tek, which made a strong market debut in 2024, reported a 35% increase in its net profit to INR 200 Cr in FY24 from INR 148.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue jumped 31% to INR 1,392.8 Cr from INR 1,064 Cr in FY23. 

Employee benefit expense rose to INR 277.3 Cr during the year under review from INR 228.3 Cr in FY23.

TBO Tek made its public market debut in May. The stock listed at INR 1,426 on the NSE, a premium of 55% to its issue price of INR 920. Similarly, the stock listed at INR 1,380 on the BSE, a premium of 50% to its issue price.

Read More: TBO Tek Q1: Profit Jumps 29% YoY To INR 61 Cr, Revenue Up 21%

Teachmint’s Loss Reduces To INR 110 Cr

Lightspeed-backed edtech startup Teachmint’s consolidated net loss narrowed 37% to INR 110.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 180.7 Cr in the previous year, on the back of a robust growth in its top line and decline in expenses.

Operating revenue increased over 2X to INR 17.1 Cr during the year ended March 31, 2024 from INR 8.1 Cr in FY23. 

Teachmint managed to bring down its total expenses by 26.6% to INR 160 Cr during the year under review from INR 217.9 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Teachmint Cuts FY24 Loss To INR 110 Cr, Revenue Soars 111%

Tracxn’s Profit Tanks In FY24

In what was a sombre fiscal for Tracxn, the market intelligence platform saw its net profit shrink by more than 80% to INR 6.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 33 Cr in the year-ago period. 

Tracxn’s operating revenue rose nearly 6% to INR 82.70 Cr during the year under review from INR 78.10 Cr in FY23.

Tracxn FY24 Results: Profits Shrink By 80% For Full Year

Trust Fintech’s Profit Triples 

The fintech SaaS company’s net profit zoomed 210% to INR 12.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 4 Cr in the previous fiscal year, on the back of a healthy growth in its top line.

The company, which made its public market debut in April 2024, saw its operating revenue jump 55.4% YoY to INR 35 Cr during the fiscal year ended March 2024.

Trust Fintech’s Net Profit Jumps 3X To INR 12.5 Cr In FY24

Ultraviolette’s Loss Jumps 8X

EV two-wheeler startup Ultraviolette’s net loss surged 8X to INR 61.58 Cr in FY24 from INR 7.46 Cr in the previous year. Operating revenue almost doubled to INR 15.8 Cr from INR 8.67 Cr in FY23. 

The startup’s total expenses zoomed 312% to INR 106.89 Cr from INR 25.92 Cr in FY23, outpacing the increase in revenue. 

Read More: Ultraviolette’s Loss Jumps 8X To INR 62 Cr In FY24

Ustraa’s Loss Widens

Men’s grooming D2C brand Ustraa, which is owned by VLCC, saw its net loss jump 25% to INR 50.3 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 40.2 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Revenue from operations declined 2.9% to INR 94 Cr during the year under review from INR 96.8 Cr in FY23. 

Despite the decline in revenue, Ustraa’s total expenses rose 5.1% to INR 144.6 Cr in FY24 from INR 137.6 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Ustraa’s FY24 Loss Widens 25% To INR 50 Cr

Vedantu’s FY24 Loss Declines 58%

Edtech unicorn Vedantu’s net loss declined 58% to INR 157.52 Cr in FY24 from INR 372.64 Cr in the previous fiscal year on the back of growth in its top line and improvement in margins.

The startup’s revenue from operations increased 21% to INR 184.50 Cr from INR 152.59 Cr in FY23. Including another income of INR 14.73 Cr, total revenue for the fiscal stood at INR 199.23 Cr.

The startup managed to reduce its expenses by 34% to INR 367.79 Cr from INR 553.09 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Vedantu’s FY24 Loss Falls 58% To INR 158 Cr

Whatfix’s Revenue Crosses INR 400 Cr Mark

SoftBank-backed Whatfix posted a 49% increase in its revenue from operations to INR 425 Cr in FY24 from INR 285 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Including other income, the startup’s total revenue rose 1.5X to INR 445.3 Cr from INR 303.9 Cr in FY23.

Whatfix also managed to lower its loss. Its net loss declined 20% to INR 263 Cr from INR 328.3 Cr in FY23. Besides, the startup’s total expenses rose only 12% to INR 706 Cr from INR 631.3 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Whatfix’s Revenue Jumps 49%, Crosses INR 400 Cr Mark

WROGN’s Operating Revenue Slumps 29%

Virat Kohli and Accel-backed youth fashion brand WROGN’s operating revenue slumped 29% to INR 243.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 344.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Including other income, total income declined 27% to INR 264.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 361.3 Cr in FY23.

Despite the decline in revenue, WROGN’s net loss rose 28% to INR 56.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 44.3 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Virat Kohli-Backed WROGN’s FY24 Revenue Falls 29% To INR 244 Cr, Loss Up 28%

Yubi’s Loss Narrows By 22%

Lending tech startup Yubi managed to reduce its net loss by over 22% to INR 395.8 Cr in FY24 from INR 509.8 Cr in the previous year.

Operating revenue jumped 47% to INR 483.7 Cr in FY24 from INR 327.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

 The Peak XV Partners-backed startup’s total expenses increased marginally to INR 938.8 Cr during the year under review from INR 922.9 Cr in FY23.

Read More: Yubi Group Cuts FY24 Net Loss By 22%, Revenue Jumps 47%

IPO-Bound Zappfresh’s Profit Rises 70% 

The IPO-bound D2C meat delivery startup reported a 70% jump in its net profit to INR 4.7 Cr during the fiscal ended March 2024 from INR 2.7 Cr in FY23. 

As per its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), Zappfresh’s operating revenue zoomed over 60% to INR 90.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 56.3 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Zappfresh DRHP: Revenue Surges 60% To INR 90 Cr In FY24, Profit Jumps 70%

Zepto’s Revenue More Than Doubles

Quick commerce unicorn Zepto’s consolidated revenue more than doubled to INR 4,454.52 Cr in the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24), on the back of growing popularity of quick commerce. The startup’s operating revenue jumped 120% during the year under review from INR 2,025.70 Cr in FY23.

Despite a surge in revenue, it managed a slight reduction in its loss to 2% to INR 1,248.64 Cr from INR 1,271.84 Cr in FY23. The startup spent INR 5,747.21 Cr in FY24, up 72% from INR 3,350.09 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Read More: Zepto’s FY24 Revenue More Than Doubles To INR 4,454 Cr

Zypp Electric’s Revenue Jumps Over 2.5X

The two-wheeler electric bike manufacturer saw its operating revenue surge over 2.5X in the financial year ended March 31, 2024. The Delhi NCR-based startup reported an operating revenue of INR 292.7 Cr in FY24, a jump of 168% from INR 109 Cr in FY23.

However, loss also surged over 125% to INR 91.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 40 Cr in FY23. 

Total expenditure grew 160% to INR 394 Cr from INR 152 Cr in FY23. 

Read More: Zypp Electric’s Revenue Zooms 2.7X, Nears INR 300 Cr Mark

Edited By: Vinaykumar Rai
Last Updated: 18 Jan, 8:30 PM IST

Note: This story has been edited to correct boAt’s FY24 operating revenue in the table.

The post Indian Startup FY24 Financials Tracker: Tracking The Financial Performance Of Top Startups appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Delhi NCR-based Breathe Well-being fired about 100 employees in a restructuring exercise last week, sources told Inc42. 

The reason behind the layoffs was that the startup has not been able to raise fresh funding and only has a runway of 6 months to 1 year, the sources said, adding that the number of employees impacted by the restructuring exercise could be as high as 120.

However, cofounder and CEO Rohan Verma told Inc42 that the startup has let go of 90 out of the 290 employees in its India team. He also refuted the allegations of lack of funding and said that the startup has closed a fresh round of funding, which will be announced soon.

The layoffs impacted employees across departments, including technology, marketing, human resources, among others, with the sales team being affected the most, the sources added. 

Breathe Well-being is shifting its focus to the US market. It has stopped onboarding new users in India, Australia, New Zealand, Africa, and other markets, except the US, they added. 

“They have been facing issues with the pricings in India and other countries. They are going to cater to the existing customers and then eventually pull the plug in the next six months. The US market is giving them results and they will focus there,” one of the sources said. 

To this, Verma said that the startup has decided to focus on the global markets, especially the US. 

Founded in 2020 by Verma and Aditya Kaicker, Breathe Well-being helps prevent, manage and reverse Type 2 diabetes. It claims to offer an easy but effective alternative to medicines to achieve this. 

Besides offering severance pay to the impacted employees, Verma said that the startup is providing them career counselling and offering job placement assistance.

The restructuring comes almost three years after Inc42 exclusively reported that Breathe Well-being laid off around 50 employees. 

The startup last raised $6.1 Mn in its pre-Series B funding round co-led by 3one4 Capital, Accel and General Catalyst. FounderBank Capital and Supermorpheus also took part in the funding round.

The startup has raised a total of funding over $10 Mn till date and also counts Scott Shleifer, former top boss at Tiger Global, and Y Combinator among its backers.

The post Exclusive: Accel-Backed Breathe Well-being Fires 100 Employees appeared first on Inc42 Media.

D2C startup The Whole Truth Foods is in talks to raise around $25 Mn in its Series C funding round at a valuation of INR 2,000 Cr (about $240 Mn), sources said.

Existing investors Peak XV Partners, Matrix Partners, Sauce.VC will participate in the funding round. The startup is also in talks with a global VC firm to bring them to its cap table, the sources told Inc42.

The Whole Truth founder Shashank Mehta didn’t respond to mail and text messages seeking details about the funding round.

The fundraise comes almost two years after the startup bagged $15 Mn in its Series B funding round, led by Peak XV (then known as Sequoia Capital India). Matrix Partners, Sauce.vc, and angel investors, including Zerodha’s Nithin Kamath, Swiggy’s Sriharsha Majety and Rebel Foods’ Jaydeep Burman, also participated in that round. 

Founded in 2019 by ex-Unilever marketing executive Mehta, The Whole Truth was earlier named ‘And Nothing Else’. It offers healthy snacks such as protein bars, peanut butter, muesli, among others, to consumers via its website and ecommerce platforms.

Its operating revenue surged 82% to INR 65.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 35.9 Cr in the previous fiscal year. The startup also managed to cut its loss by 32.7% to INR 23.8 Cr from INR 35.4 Cr in FY23. 

The sources cited above said that The Whole Truth is on track to post sales of INR 250 Cr in FY25. Considering this number, the startup is raising the funding at a valuation which is 8X its sales.

The Whole Truth competes against the likes of SuperYou, Yoga Bar, Wellbeing Nutrition, RiteBite, among others. 

Last month, Inc42 exclusively reported on Ranveer Singh cofounded protein supplement brand SuperYou bagging its Series A funding. 

In FY24, the startup reported an operating revenue of INR 65.3 Cr, 82% higher than INR 35.9 Cr it had reported in the previous fiscal year. Whereas the startup’s loss reduced by 32.7% to INR 23.8 Cr from INR 35.4 Cr in FY23. 

As per sources, the startup will be recording a sales worth INR 250 Cr sales in FY25. This translates to almost a 10X valuation multiple at which the startup is raising the fresh round of funding. 

The Whole Truth Food competes against the likes of SuperYou, Yoga Bar, Wellbeing Nutrition, Super You, RiteBite among others. 

The post Exclusive: The Whole Truth In Talks To Raise $25 Mn From Peak XV, Others appeared first on Inc42 Media.

EV cab hailing startup BluSmart is in the process of raising $50 Mn in its Series B funding round at a pre-money valuation of $335 Mn, sources told Inc42. 

The round will see participation from some of its existing investors, HNIs, family offices, promoters and couple of  VC funds. BluSmart’s existing investors includes responsAbility Investments AG, Sumant Sinha, MS Dhoni Family Office, BP Ventures, Survam Partners, Mayfield India Fund, 100Unicorns, JITO, Green Frontier Capital. 

The startup has already received half of the total fundraise of $50 Mn and the round is expected to close next month, the sources added.

Responding to Inc42’s queries on the funding, BluSmart said that the details will be revealed after the conclusion of the round.

The fresh funding round comes almost six months after the ride-hailing giant bagged $24 Mn from responsAbility Investments AG, Sumant Sinha, MS Dhoni Family Office, and its founders.⁠ 

Founded in 2019 by Anmol Jaggi and Punit K Goyal, BluSmart offers EV ride-hailing services and charging infrastructure across Delhi NCR and Bengaluru. It also launched its services in Dubai in June last year and in Mumbai earlier this month.

BluSmart currently operates over 8,500 EVs and has a community of over 10,000 active driver partners. Its EV charging network includes 5,800 stations across 50 hubs in Delhi NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru, covering over 2 Mn sq. ft.

Overall, BluSmart has raised $136 Mn in equity funding to date. 

While the startup is yet to file its financial statements for FY24, it claimed earlier that its revenue zoomed to over INR 390 Cr during the year from INR 160 Cr in FY23.

Meanwhile, the sources told Inc42 that BluSmart’s annual revenue rate (ARR) for FY25 is at $95 Mn (INR 815 Cr) currently.

Last month, BluSmart also claimed that its asset-leasing initiative, Assure by BluSmart, has crossed INR 100 Cr in book value within its first year of launch.

The post Exclusive: BluSmart To Raise $50 Mn At Pre-Money Valuation Of $335 Mn appeared first on Inc42 Media.

B2B manufacturing and supply chain enablement startup Groyyo is in talks to raise about $40 Mn funding, primarily in equity, from Tiger Global and other investors at a valuation of about $200 Mn (around INR 1,700 Cr), sources told Inc42.

This will be an increase of about 25% from its last valuation of $160 Mn (around INR 1,200 Cr).

Besides Tiger Global, the Series B funding round will also see participation from other existing investors like Alpha Wave, Sparrow Capital, among others.

The startup is currently in talks with global sovereign and hedge funds and more investors may join the funding round, the sources added. The round will also have a small debt component.

Groyyo declined to comment on Inc42’s queries on the development. 

Founded by Subin Mitra and Pratik Tiwari in July 2021, Groyyo offers an end-to-end platform to enable small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in apparel and textile industry to meet global demand and improve their capacity utilisation. It also helps the SMEs in the fashion and lifestyle industries digitise their processes, including inventory management. 

Groyyo has almost stopped supplying finished products to Indian brands, and mainly deals with international brands such as Zara, Mango, John Lewis, among others, now. As per the sources, the startup generates almost 90% of its revenue from these brands. 

It closed FY24 with an operating revenue of INR 425 Cr (about $50 Mn) and is on course to end FY25 with a revenue of INR 480 Cr (about $60 Mn). 

The sources said that the startup achieved EBITDA profitability at the end of 2024. They credited the ongoing tensions in Bangladesh and the proactive steps taken by the Centre as part of the ‘Make In India’ initiative for this.

The fresh funding comes almost two years after the startup raised $40 Mn in its Series A funding round in a mix of equity and debt from Tiger Global, Alpha Wave, Sparrow Capital and Stride Ventures. 

Overall, it has raised a total funding of over $50 Mn to date.

In December 2024, the startup elevated Nitin Jain to the role of cofounder from his earlier position of managing director of exports.

The post Exclusive: Groyyo In Talks To Raise $40 Mn From Tiger Global, Others appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Used car marketplace Cars24 has launched a discovery platform to find nearby driving schools, Car24 Driving School, on its app.  

Launched a fortnight ago, the new offering is available in cities like Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, among others, Inc42 has learnt.

According to people aware of the matter, the startup began testing the service at the end of last year. Currently, Cars24 is not charging any listing fees from these driving schools. However, this might change if the offering gains traction.

“The company wants to become a one-stop service provider for car owners by offering all ancillary services related to cars,” one of the persons aware of the matter said. 

Cars24 declined to comment on Inc42’s queries about the new launch. 

Last year, the startup launched a host of car-related services, including hiring drivers, car scrapping, car management system, a dashboard to track PUC, challans, insurance, and service history, a vault to store documents, among others. 

Earlier, the startup also called its application a super app. 

Founded in 2015 by Gajendra Jangid, Vikram Chopra, Ruchit Agarwal, and Mehul Agrawal, Cars24 operates a marketplace for buying and selling used cars in India, Australia, and the UAE. It also provides financing for buying cars.

The startup competes against the likes of CarTrade, CarDekho, Spinny, and Droom. 

Cars24 has raised over $1.3 Bn in funding to date and counts marquee names such as Alpha Wave, DST Global, Peak XV Partners, SoftBank, and Alibaba, among others, as its investors. It was last valued at $3.3 Bn when it raised $400 Mn in 2021. 

On the financial front, the startup’s operating revenue jumped 25% to INR 6,917.1 Cr in FY24 from INR 5,529.6 Cr in the previous year due to increase in unit sales and average selling price per car. Its net loss jumped 7% to INR 498.4 Cr from INR 467.7 Cr in FY23. 

The post Exclusive: Cars24 Launches Listing Platform For Driving Schools On Its App appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Union commerce minister Piyush Goyal on Friday said that India’s electric vehicle industry doesn’t need more subsidies as it has matured enough.

“Electric mobility of India is ready and set to fly. They don’t need any subsidy in any categories,” the minister said during a media interaction.

He added that the existing subsidies will continue for some more time to help players in the EV segment strengthen their presence. 

It is pertinent to mention that the heavy industries ministry (MHI) notified the INR 10,900 Cr PM Electric Drive Revolution in Innovative Vehicle Enhancement (PM E-DRIVE) scheme last year. The scheme will continue till March 31, 2026.

Earlier today, Goyal held a meeting with the EV industry stakeholders, including representatives from TVS Motor, Tata Motors, Audi, among others. The meeting was also attended by Bhupathiraju Srinivasa Varma, minister of state in MHI. 

Goyal said that all stakeholders agreed in the meeting that while subsidies were beneficial, they won’t need them further post the end of the current regime. 

The minister said that the Centre is open to suggestions for increasing the adoption of EVs in the country. 

Talking about the achievements of the startup ecosystem ahead of the ninth ‘National Startup Day’, which will be celebrated on January 16, Goyal said Indian startups which began operations in garages are becoming unicorns now.

Goyal said that the increasing participation of women has further helped in the growth of the startup ecosystem. “Almost 43% of startups have a woman founder or a director. Women are pillars of success in the rise of this ecosystem,” he added.

Responding to a question about the steps being taken by the Centre to expedite the process of for startups to shift domicile to India from foreign counties, Goyal said, “It is a welcome sign and satisfactory that so many startups are returning home. We will discuss with the National Startup Advisory Council and take feedback. If any steps are there to simplify their (Indian startups shifting their base to India) journey back home, we are open to the ideas.” 

Speaking about the growing popularity of quick commerce, the minister said that the government is keeping a close watch on these players and they need to follow the law of the land. 

The post India’s EV Industry Doesn’t Need More Subsidies: Piyush Goyal appeared first on Inc42 Media.

“We are trying yaar. I know some people don’t believe in us and they have some cynical idea about what we are building, but we are working hard to build a company that we and hopefully the nation will be proud of,” — Zepto cofounder and CEO Aadit Palicha

It’s hard to believe that a startup with just three full years of operations has stolen all the limelight this year. In some ways, Zepto’s staggering $1.3 Bn fundraising spree (10% of all funding this year) reminds us of the frenzy before the funding winter. 

If that was not enough, Zepto outpaced Swiggy’s Instamart, and Zomato’s Blinkit in terms of revenue, earning more than both these giants combined. So when we look back at 2024, it would be a great disservice not to get a closer look at the Zepto story. 

The strong financial performance has allowed Palicha and the company to bring conviction around its plans for a potential public listing. As per sources, the startup has already begun its groundwork for an IPO, including talks with bankers.

If Zepto manages to pull off its IPO listing by the end of 2025, it will possibly become the first Indian startup to list within just four years of its inception. To date, the shortest period a startup has taken to lists since its inception is Ola Electric – six years. 

Plus, 2024 was marked with another major transition for Zepto — moving from Mumbai to Bengaluru — and with this the next chapter of the company. 

What this means is that perhaps this is the startup that most are looking at when it comes to the next big thing from India. How does Palicha view this ‘burden’ and will the highs of 2024 be followed by another watershed year for Zepto? 

How Zepto Showed Its Stripes In 2024

The startup entered the year with $261 Mn – the amount it raised in 2023 alone. The idea was simple: continue scaling the company while also improving unit economics and then go to the investors in the second half of the year to raise a fresh round. 

“Our thought process was to get to a certain scale, while multiplying the business year-on-year and get to a point where we can show our investors that we are getting close to profitability and can achieve cashflow breakeven. After this, we wanted to raise capital primarily in the second half of 2024,” Palicha recalled. 

Palicha admitted that investors would only back the company at a higher valuation only when there is a measurable change in the unit economics. This was the big push in the beginning of the year — Zepto’s contribution margin improved to a negative INR 0.5 per order by April 2024 from a negative INR 8 at the end of the previous year. 

This improved unit economics coupled with its fast growth prompted investors to invest sooner in the company. “Disciplined aggression is how I would want to sum up this year,” Palicha remarked. 

The aggression came in the middle of the year. Zepto, which was just operational in 7 cities by the end of 2023, expanded to over 35 cities in the year, and its dark store count doubled, while employee count jumped by 3X.

$1.3 Bn Funding, Delivered In No Time

Zepto’s first round this year came in June 2024, soon after there was a noticeable tick in unit economics. It bagged $665 Mn in its Series F funding round, almost doubling its valuation from $1.5 Bn to $3.6 Bn.

What caught people’s attention was not the 2X jump in valuation, but Zepto’s ability to bring several new investors in this round, including the likes of Anu Hariharan’s newly formed VC firm Avra, which made its first investment in India through Zepto. 

Even in its Series G funding round, Zepto raised funding from three new investors including General Catalyst, Mars Growth Capital, and Epiq Capital. 

Most young startups might struggle to bring such investors on their cap table, let alone a startup that is being run by first-time founders such as Zepto’s Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra. 

Palicha explained that these rounds were a result of engaging with investors in 2022 and 2023, when the startup was out in the market for funds., “Over the years I have managed to build a good relationship with these folks even when I was not looking to raise the money. They saw the potential in the company, and chose to support our vision.”

The third fundraise in 2024 was the $350 Mn, which was notable for being a wholly domestic round. Led by Motilal Oswal’s private wealth division, this round saw participation from Indian family offices, which was the company’s way of diversifying the cap table. 

Palicha admitted that while this round was excess to requirements, it was needed to increase the sake of domestic investors in the company. 

But raising such big rounds comes at the expense of equity dilution. 

Prior to this funding frenzy, the founders and their family trusts owned around 22% of the company. While it is not clear how much stake both of them continue to hold after three mega rounds, Palicha claimed neither founder is losing sleep over the equity. 

“Whenever we go for an IPO we are looking to have 15-20% stakes. We are not losing sleep over the dilution of our stakes. A US-based founder once told me “when you have built a $50 Bn company, nobody will raise an eye on that 1% or 2%.”

Zepto Cafe And The Revenue Push

The year for Zepto was also marked by product innovation and an entry into new verticals. 

First, the startup launched its membership subscription – Zepto Pass – to offer free delivery, a move that would directly impact its topline. 

Post this, the startup, which initially piloted its cafe business in 2022, finally ironed out the kinks and launched it officially in 2024 as a separate app. 

The separation of Zepto from Zepto Cafe shows the startup is now going all-in on this vertical. It will also be investing separately to push the Zepto Cafe business and hire talent exclusively for the cafe business.

Besides, the startup has also announced that it will be launching 100 new cafes every month across six major cities, including Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, and Pune. But these are early days — as of December, Zepto Cafe has completed 30K orders. 

According to the CEO, Zepto Cafe will be one of the biggest QSR chains in the country, clearly boost its top line, and help achieve meaningful customer retention. 

“Our long-term goal was to really bring serious evolutionary differentiation in the quick commerce business and that is why coming into the 2024, we were working on deep structural innovation that would change the quick commerce experience and so we introduced Zepto Cafe and Supersaver,” Palicha said, adding that it take times to build these products and get them ready to be revenue generators. 

For instance, Supersaver was primarily launched to increase the startup’s average order value, since it only allows purchases in bulk — a move that’s perhaps born out of the need to bring more families to the quick commerce fold. 

On the other hand, Zepto had to strike off one of a planned ambitious project – medicine delivery. But Palicha does not rule out a return to this space, now that the likes of Swiggy and Flipkart Minutes have added medicine delivery.

After having piloted medicine delivery in 2024, Palicha said the company decided to call it off as it was stretching the bandwidth of the team, and there were a lot of regulatory hurdles in the way.

But quick commerce is a segment where most companies need to be on par with the competition in terms of services and product availability. The big push for electronics and lifestyle products in 2024 is a clear indication of the herd mentality in this space.

Given this, Palicha claimed Zepto is now ready to take another shot at medicine delivery in 2025, but did not reveal how this would be structured from a compliance POV. 

Next In 2025: Going Back To Burn

Speaking of competition, Blinkit, Instamart and Zepto combined own almost 100% market share, but that might soon change with the likes of Flipkart, Amazon, Tata-owned BigBasket and others also eyeing 10-minute deliveries. 

The quick commerce market is growing at a stupendous pace. According to a Redseer report, the total addressable market for quick commerce is around $45 Bn, this is roughly 7% of the total $620 Bn grocery market in India. 

According to brokerage firm Motilal Oswal, while Blinkit commands 46% of the market share, Zepto which is relatively a new player in the space has managed to own 29%, beating the category inventor – Swiggy Instamart which has been reduced to 24%. 

While Blinkit is currently dominating the space primarily due to its larger SKUs, faster execution, better customer experience, while staying under the ambit of Zomato, Zepto with its billion dollars in its coffers is aggressively entering into newer cities by setting up dark stores. 

As the year ends, Zepto’s dark store network is almost at par with Instamart’s 609 stores operating in 54 cities, and Blinkit’s 719 dark stores in more than 44 cities. 

Besides operating in metro cities, Zepto just like Blinkit is launching its operations in tier II cities. This year alone it has launched operations in Rajkot, Jaipur, Chandigarh, and Ahmedabad, among others. 

While adding that metro cities continue to be an important focus for the company, Palicha said, “We are going to be in tier II and tier III cities. The tier II and tier III cities are doing fairly well for us as this is our added growth and we are going to double down on them in the coming years,” adding that a dark store in Nashik is doing better in terms of profitability than a dark store in Mumbai. 

With entries of new and well-capitalised players in the quick commerce space, the competition is going to heat up as companies will be at each other’s neck trying to eat each other’s market share. The edge for companies could very well be robust unit economics, and in this regard, the existing giants have a playbook ready. 

Palicha is unfazed by the competition, and as in the past, is banking on Zepto’s strengths in execution. “I don’t think it is about how much funds one has, but more importantly it is about execution. I genuinely think the market is big enough where multiple good players can co-exist. If there are three large players executing well, then there will be three large players in the market.”

What next? For Zepto, Peter Ducker’s famous quote “Innovate or Die” is most appropriate. 

Zepto knows that quick commerce is not just about fast deliveries but rapid iteration and development. In many ways, this means that no company can afford to rest on its laurels or existing market share, because marketing dollars change the equation. 

As popular as quick commerce is today, it’s certainly not a space where users are loyal to one app or the other. Given this, the need to acquire, retain and even re-acquire users is very high in quick commerce.

Take Dunzo’s case. Unable to raise funding and failing to adapt to the quick commerce transition meant the one-time posterchild of hyperlocal delivery had to all but wind down. 

To fuel its growth plans and keep up with customers in new markets, Zepto has increased its monthly cash burn from around INR 40 Cr to INR 250 Cr after the recent capital influx. This leaves little doubt for the idea that expansion in quick commerce — presence or categories — necessitates large funding rounds, even after profitability, as evidenced by Zomato’s INR 8,500 Cr QIP. 

Palicha does believe Zepto needs to keep growing. Throughout our conversation, he repeatedly dropped phrases such as “keep growing”, “keep improving inputs” and “keep doing new things for customers”, which perhaps shows the unenviable side of the quick commerce boom.

“We are still far away from where we want to be. In the quick commerce market, there is a $50 Bn – $70 Bn opportunity in terms of the topline, and we haven’t yet achieved 10% of it yet. A lot of blood and sweat still needs to be shedded, but we will get there,” the Zepto CEO added. 

The 22-year-old has time and again in public has drawn a comparison between Zepto and the likes of Amazon or DMart.

But it will need to use the existing capital judiciously to grow in the next year. Sources close to Zepto added that the startup won’t be raising any further capital until its IPO. With enough cash in the bank, Zepto will be in hyper-growth mode until March 2025, post that it will fix its unit economics in new markers as it builds up to the IPO.

Thus far, Zepto has managed to show its capability both in terms of scaling up and fending off big competition. But there’s more of the same in store in 2025, only this time around, Zepto is a bit bulky and needs more fuel to keep its juggernaut going.

Edited By Nikhil Subramaniam

The post Zepto’s 2024 Delivered In 10 Minutes appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Shantanu Despande-led D2C grooming and personal care brand Bombay Shaving Company’s net loss declined 23% to INR 62.1 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 80 Cr in the previous fiscal year, as its top line rose and margins improved.

The startup’s operating revenue breached the INR 200 Cr mark during the year under review. Revenue from operations rose 26% to INR 204 Cr from INR 161.8 Cr in FY23.

Including other income, total revenue jumped to INR 233.4 Cr in FY24 from INR 182.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Founded in 2016, Bombay Shaving Company began as a D2C men’s grooming brand. Since then, it has expanded into new categories like perfumes and face washes and turned into an omnichannel brand.

Besides men’s products, Bombay Shaving Company also operates Bombae, which sells products for women, like razors, trimmers, wax strips, among others.

Where Did Bombay Shaving Company Spend?

The rise in the startup’s expenditure was lower than the increase in its revenue. Its total expenses grew 13% to INR 295.5 Cr in FY24 from INR 262.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. 

Procurement Costs: The biggest expenditure was the procurement cost for products. Bombay Shaving Company spent INR 118.6 Cr under the head in FY24, an increase of 34% from INR 88.4 Cr in the previous year. 

Advertising Expenses: Marketing expenditure jumped 12% to INR 40.2 Cr from INR 36 Cr in FY23. 

Employee Benefit Expenses: The startup’s employee expenses increased a mere 5% to INR 36.7 Cr during the year under review from INR 35 Cr in FY23.

EDBITA margin improved to -26.1% in FY24 from – 46.4% in the previous year. 

Bombay Shaving Company last raised INR 24 Cr debt from Alteria Capital to expand its offline presence to 25 cities from 12 cities. Back then, Despande said that the startup was expecting a 35% growth in its top line in FY25.

The debt round came almost two years after the startup raised INR 210 Cr in its Series C funding round, which saw participation from Gulf Islamic Investments, Malabar Investments, and Patni Advisors. 

Bombay Shaving Company has raised close to $50 Mn to date. It competes against the likes of Ustraa, Beardo, The Man Company, among others. 

The post Bombay Shaving Company’s FY24 Loss Declines To INR 62 Cr appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Amid the rising competition in the 10-minute food delivery segment, Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola Consumer, which provides hyperlocal delivery services on ONDC, has begun piloting quick food deliveries in some parts of Bengaluru.

Under the food delivery section on Ola Cabs app, Ola is claiming to deliver the food items from various restaurants within 10 minutes. 

“Ola has started trying out its quick food delivery in the Bengaluru region via ONDC. Depending on the response, we will launch it across the country,” a company source told Inc42.

The full-scale launch of the 10-minute food deliveries is expected in the coming weeks, sources said.

An Ola spokesperson declined to comment on Inc42’s queries on the development. 

This comes a day after ONDC’s managing director and chief executive officer Thampy Koshy said that Ola is amongst the top two platforms on ONDC in the food and beverages (F&B) segment.

“Ola has informed ONDC that they will go pan-India soon in the F&B category. It also recently started doing grocery and will be adding other segments soon,” Koshy added. 

Ola currently offers F&B services via ONDC but only in limited cities. Apart from food delivery, it also offers last-mile logistics services for grocery shopping and pharmaceuticals via ONDC.

Earlier this year, Ola Cabs was rebranded as Ola Consumer. At the time, Aggarwal said that  the company would double down on its partnership with ONDC and will offer a slew of services to make ecommerce more accessible and affordable. 

Last month, Ola Consumer turned into a public limited company as it eyes its initial public offering in the coming months.

The latest development comes at a time when Ola’s rivals, Uber and Rapido, have also joined the ONDC bandwagon.

Earlier today, hyperlocal delivery startup magicpin announced the launch of magicNOW to offer food delivery in 15 minutes amid a rising competition in the instant delivery offerings.

Zomato, one of the giants in the segment, recently launched a new app Bistro under its quick commerce brand Blinkit to deliver food in 10 minutes. While Zepto is expanding Zepto Cafe nationwide for 10-minute food delivery, Swiggy launched Swiggy Bolt and Cafe.

[With inputs from Bismah Malik] 

The post Exclusive: Ola Pilots 10-Minute Food Delivery On ONDC appeared first on Inc42 Media.

A total of 51 founders of 28 Indian new-age tech companies took home INR 283.5 Cr in cumulative annual salary in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24)!

However, the average founder salary plummeted 26.9% to INR 5.55 Cr in FY24 from INR 7.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

This comes at a time when the startup ecosystem continues to be in the grip of the funding winter, which began in 2022. As investors tightened the purse strings following the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022, there was mayhem in the Indian startup ecosystem, which was riding high on the bull run of 2020 and 2021.

Consider this: The total funding raised by Indian startups fell to $25 Bn in 2022 from $42 Bn a year ago. This number further plummeted to $10 Bn in 2023 and there was no improvement in the first half of 2024 as well.

This acute funding crunch has meant that Indian startups have had to take drastic measures to cut their costs and extend their runways. Following the onset of the funding winter, startups reduced their advertising and marketing budgets to cut losses or turn profitable in FY23. They also resorted to massive restructuring exercises which resulted in thousands of employees losing their jobs. Some of them even shut down operations.

Amid all these, Inc42 launched ‘Founder Salaries Tracker FY23’ to keep you updated with the salaries of the founders at a time when employees were losing jobs and taking pay cuts.

Continuing that, we are bringing to you the tracker for FY24, which was not much different from FY23. Consolidation remained the main theme in FY24 as well, as startups looked to improve their bottom lines even if they had to compromise on growth in their top lines.

As per the data collated by Inc42, the aforementioned startups posted a cumulative operating revenue of INR 65,523 Cr in FY24. Of these, nine startups reported a combined loss of INR 4,417 Cr, whereas the remaining reported a total profit of INR 7,960 Cr. 

For a deep dive into the financial numbers, take a look at Inc42’s ‘FY24 Financials Tracker’.

Now, let’s delve deeper into the salaries that the startup founders earned in the last financial year. The tracker will keep you informed about the remuneration earned by the founders in FY24, the percentage increase/ decrease in their salaries compared to FY23, and more.

Editor’s Note: This list is not a ranking of any kind. The companies have been placed alphabetically. This is a running list and will be updated periodically.

Founder Remuneration Tracker FY24

Companies are placed in alphabetical order | Data has been sourced from MCA filings, annual reports, and DRHPs |

*Note: Includes Share-based payments, reimbursements, bonus, variable pay, among others

Supam Maheshwari | FirstCry

Supam Maheshwari, the founder of recently listed ecommerce marketplace FirstCry, retained the top spot in terms of annual remuneration in FY24 as well. As per the startup’s red herring prospectus, the founder took home INR 103.8 Cr as remuneration in FY24, which was almost 50% lower than INR 200.7 Cr a year ago.

However, it needs to be highlighted that this amount includes short-term employment benefits, share based payments accrual, and excludes provisions for gratuity, compensated absences and other long term employment benefits which have been actuarially determined and the amounts pertaining to the key managerial personnel (KMP) are not material.

FirstCry reported an operating revenue of INR 6,480 Cr, with a loss of INR 321.5 Cr in FY24. 

Kamath Brothers | Zerodha

Nikhil and Nithin Kamath, founders of Zerodha, clinched the second spot in terms of annual salaries in FY24. Nithin took home INR 33.5 Cr as gross salary during the year, a 30% decline from INR 48 Cr he took home last year. Similarly, Nikhil’s gross salary stood at INR 33.9 Cr in FY24, down 29% from INR 48 Cr in FY23.

However, including the income clubbed under ‘other’ head, their total remuneration stood at INR 96 Cr each. 

Zerodha reported an operating revenue of INR 9,372.1 Cr, while its profit jumped to INR 5,496.3 Cr in FY24. 

Aneesh Reddy | Capillary Technologies

Aneesh Reddy, the founder of SaaS startup Capillary Technologies, was at the third spot in the list. He took home INR 13.3 Cr in the last financial year, an increase of 1,480% from the gross salary of INR 84 Lakh in FY23. Aneesh received a share-based payment of INR 23.1 Cr in FY23, which plummeted to INR 50 Lakh this year. The startup, earlier this year, extended its Series D funding round to $140 Mn, securing $90 Mn in its secondary transaction. 

Bhanu Chopra | RateGain

Publicly listed RateGain’s Bhanu Chopra took home INR 5.8 Cr in FY24, and was fourth on the list. However, his gross salary declined 5% compared to INR 6.1 Cr in FY23. The company’s net profit rose 114% to INR 146.3 Cr in FY24 from INR 68.4 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Operating revenue jumped 69% to INR 957 Cr from INR 565 Cr in FY23. 

Vijay Shekhar Sharma | Paytm

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the founder, chairman, MD and CEO of fintech giant Paytm, was at the fifth spot with an annual remuneration of INR 4.4 Cr during the year under review. Sharma, who is one of the most active angel investors in the county, saw a 10% hike in his annual remuneration in FY24 from INR 4 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

Varun Alagh | Mamaearth

Varun Alagh, the CEO of publicly listed beauty care startup Mamaearth, took home INR 3.97 Cr in annual remuneration in the recently concluded financial year. He received a hefty increment of 166.4% compared to INR 1.49 Cr he took home in the previous year. 

In comparison, his wife Ghazal Alagh, who is the cofounder of the startup, took home INR 1.79 Cr in remuneration in FY24, a jump of 80.8% higher than INR 99 Lakh in the previous fiscal year. 

The Delhi NCR-based startup reported an operating revenue of INR 1,919.9 Cr during the year under review with a profit of INR 110.5 Cr.

Edited By Vinaykumar Rai

Last Updated On December 16, 8:40 PM IST

The post Founder Salaries Tracker FY24: How Much Did Startup Founders Earn? appeared first on Inc42 Media.

After establishing its dominance in the quick commerce space, Zomato-owned Blinkit has forayed into the quick food delivery segment with the launch of a new app, Bistro.

The app seems to be in pilot phase and is currently operational in some areas of Gurugram.

Blinkit’s Bistro delivers meals, snacks, and beverages like tea and coffee in up to 15 minutes.

Blinkit was not immediately available to comment on Inc42’s queries on the development. The story would be updated on receiving a response.

With the foray into the quick food delivery segment, Blinkit will take on Zepto Cafe and Swiggy’s Cafe. 

Zepto took the lead in quick snack deliveries with the launch of Zepto Cafe in Mumbai in 2022 to deliver branded pre-made food items with non-branded items. 

On Wednesday (December 12), Zepto announced that it would launch a separate app for Zepto Cafe, under which it delivers beverages and snacks within 10 minutes. Last month, the quick commerce startup also said that it would expand Zepto Cafe, which was only available in Mumbai till then, to 120 cities in the country, including Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai and Pune among others.

The fresh development also comes months after Swiggy began a pilot for ‘Cafe’ to deliver snacks and beverages in 15 minutes. 

After grocery, quick delivery of food has emerged as the latest focus area for quick commerce startups. Besides the quick commerce leaders, a number of new startups are also trying to establish themselves in this segment.

Bengaluru-based 10-minute food delivery startup Swish, which was launched this year, raised $2 Mn from Accel last month. Another startup, Zing, also launched its 10-minute food delivery service in Delhi NCR recently.

The new launch is part of Zomato’s efforts to scale up Blinkit further and shore up its top line. In November, Inc42 exclusively reported that Blinkit was piloting a large order fleet for select items. Recently, it also launched EMI options for large order value.

Blinkit posted a revenue of INR 1,156 Cr in the Q2 FY25 as against INR 505 Cr in the year-ago quarter. On a quarter-on-quarter-basis, revenue grew 23% from INR 942 Cr. The quick commerce startup narrowed its adjusted EBITDA loss to INR 8 Cr during the September quarter of 2024 from a loss of INR 125 Cr in the year-ago quarter. 

The post Exclusive: Blinkit Launches New App ‘Bistro’ To Take On Zepto Cafe appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Mumbai-based fintech startup Snapmint has raised $18 Mn in its Pre-Series B funding round. The round, which was a mix of debt and equity, was led by Prashasta Seth of Prudent Investment Managers, and also saw participation from new investor Perpetuity Ventures and existing investor Pegasus Fininvest.

Without disclosing the valuation, Snapmint cofounder Nalin Agrawal told Inc42 that the funding was raised almost at 3X the valuation of the last funding round.

The startup plans to utilise the capital to enhance its technology, launch new BNPL products, expand product categories, and onboard new merchants. “… as we are an NBFC, we also need to expand our balance sheet,” Agrawal said.

Founded in 2017 by IIT Bombay graduates Agrawal, Anil Gelra and Abhineet Sawa, Snapmint provides BNPL offerings with an aim to help Indians without credit cards get credit access. It claims that most of the products on its platform are available at no-cost EMIs with three-month plans. 

It obtained the NBFC licence from the Reserve Bank of India in 2019.

Snapmint’s BNPL offerings are available for categories like consumer electronics, health and wellness. It sees most of the purchases in the fashion and personal electronics segment. 

The startup has tie-ups with brands like boAt, Xiaomi, Croma, Cult, Arvind Fashions, Neeman’s, The Sleep Company, Snitch, and Mokobara, among others. Its offerings are available in more than 26,000 pin codes in the country.

Currently, the startup claims to offer 5 Mn EMI purchases on an annual basis and have over 35 Mn app downloads.

Snapmint is now also piloting EMI offerings for offline businesses. “We are currently piloting our EMI offerings with some merchants. We began our pilot with The Sleep Company in Bengaluru, and now we are working with other brands as well, primarily in Bengaluru and Mumbai,” cofounder Sawa said. 

On the financial front, Agrawal said that the startup’s revenue stood at INR 80 Cr in FY24. It expects to close FY25 with a revenue of INR 150 Cr to INR 160 Cr and also projects to breakeven by the end of the year.

The fundraise comes almost two years after Snapmint raised $21 Mn in a mix of equity and debt. The round was led by Seth, and also saw participation from Kae Capital, 9 Unicorns, Anicut Capital, and Negen Capital. 

With this investment, the startup has raised a total funding of over $38 Mn till date. 

Snapmint competes with the likes of Simpl, BharatX, LazyPay, among others.

The post Fintech Startup Snapmint Bags $18 Mn To Launch New BNPL Products appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Delhi NCR and London-based study abroad startup Leverage.biz, which runs a study abroad platform Leverage Edu is on track to cross the INR 200 Cr revenue mark in the ongoing financial year (FY25), sources said. 

While the startup, which also runs immigrant banking play Fly.finance, student housing provider Fly.homes, is yet to file its financial statement for FY24, the sources said that its revenue jumped over 35% year-on-year (YoY) to INR 95 Cr in the last fiscal year.

The startup expects to cross the INR 200 Cr mark in the top line on the back of its growing presence in West Africa and South Asia. Without commenting on the numbers, Leverage.biz CEO and founder Akshay Chaturvedi told Inc42, “… over 20% of our student recruitment revenue is now non-India source markets, primarily Nigeria and Nepal. This will grow further.”

He added that the startup’s EBITDA margin is expected to improve to a negative 20-25% in the ongoing fiscal year from a negative 55% in FY24.

Leverage.biz posted a net loss of INR 68 Cr in FY24 and its total expenditure stood at INR 162 Cr. The startup expects to turn profitable by September 2025, one of the sources said.

Chaturvedi said that the startup plans to go for an initial public offering (IPO) sometime in 2027 “We want to deliver 4-6 strong quarters; once we get there, hopefully in the next 18-24 months, we should be ready to build in the public markets,” he said.

Founded in 2017 by Chaturvedi, Leverage Edu is a study abroad platform that helps students apply to foreign universities. Besides the Leverage Edu app, it offers courses through LeverageIELTS and recently launched LeverageTOEFL apps.

Leverage.biz claims to engage with over 150 Mn students annually and its apps have seen over 2 Mn downloads. The UK is the top destination for students opting for Leverage Edu, followed by the US and Germany.

Focus On New Verticals

It has also forayed into financing and accommodation segments for the students. Leverage Edu is looking to disburse loans worth over INR 430 Cr in FY25 through its education financing vertical, Fly.finance. 

Besides, it is also mulling launching international credit cards and short-term insurance products for students going abroad for studies. Fly.finance has also become one of the largest partners for leading education-focussed NBFCs and private banks. Currently, Fly Finance is moving currencies worth over $1Mn on a daily basis in its forex business.

Meanwhile, Leverage Edu expects its student accommodation vertical, Fly.homes, to close $45 Mn in gross booking in FY25, which is mostly split across the UK and the Australian market. 

Talking about the vertical, Chaturvedi said, “We are not following what the market is doing with the student accommodation business, we don’t have to go out and source students like other players. Rather than focusing on a low average revenue per user (ARPU) and high customer acquisition cost (CAC) game, we are focussed on providing a more comprehensive value to the students in Leverage Edu universe, hence we now engage in room nominations with multiple global players.” 

The startup has also been launching its experience centres over the last few quarters in select markets.

The startup is also looking to shore up its B2B vertical by adding new offerings such as automated-wallet payout, an AI-enhanced helpdesk, among others. Leverage Edu provides a software suite to over 2,000 study abroad consultants. 

Leverage Edu has raised a total funding of over $70 Mn from Princeton-based ETS, Binny Bansal, Blume Ventures, DSG Consumer Partners, Kaizenvest Private Equity, Mankind Pharma family office, Caratlane founder Mithun Sacheti, among others.

The post Leverage.biz On Track To Cross INR 200 Cr Revenue Mark In FY25 appeared first on Inc42 Media.

In a bid to further shore up its user base, Kunal Shah-led CRED is piloting a new feature which allows users of the app to use CRED Coins at offline stores and for online purchases, sources told Inc42.

CRED rewards its users for making credit card payments through CRED Coins. Till now, CRED Coins were only allowed to be used for in-app purchases from the startup’s ecommerce marketplace.

For the pilot, CRED has partnered online and offline merchants to allow its users to redeem CRED Coins for select products at their outlets or apps, the sources said. For instance, a CRED member will be able to use coins at food and beverage outlets after scanning a QR at the merchant outlet. After the verification, the user will be able to redeem CRED Coins for getting discounts.

The coins can also be used to buy Zepto Pass, the quick commerce startup’s membership programme. In addition to redeeming coins,  users can earn cashback or vouchers on the websites of brands like Urban Company and ixigo to get cashbacks and vouchers. CRED plans to soon add more merchants to the programme.

The pilot is currently live for a few selected users. They can use CRED coins for making online purchases on the apps and websites of select merchants. The offline stores for the programme will go live soon in Bengaluru, before national expansion. 

CRED declined to comment on the development.

The development comes at a time when CRED has put in motion its super app plans with the launch of a number of services. It recently forayed into the insurance space. Last month, it partnered three insurance companies – Go Digit General Insurance, ICICI Lombard and Zurich Kotak General Insurance – to provide insurance service to its users.

It also launched CRED Money in July to enable its users to get a unified view of all their bank account balances, reminders for recurring payments beyond credit card transactions and a tool to analyse spends.

Additionally, CRED partnered non-banking financial company (NBFC) L&T Finance to offer unsecured personal loans to customers. 

With the new pilot, the startup is likely looking to attract new users to explore its range of services. Besides, it might also be looking to increase its UPI transactions. In October, Sachin Bansal-led Navi overtook CRED to emerge as the fourth-largest player in the UPI space.

On the financial front, CRED’s operating revenue jumped 71% to INR 2,397 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 1,400 Cr in the previous fiscal year. It attributed the rise in revenue to increase in member engagement and monetisation. CRED’s operating loss declined 41% to INR 609 Cr from INR 1,024 Cr in FY23. 

CRED, which is valued at $6.4 Bn, has raised over $800 Mn in funding from the likes of Tiger Global, Peak XV Partners, Alpha Wave Ventures, among others. 

The post Exclusive: CRED Members Can Now Use CRED Coins For Offline, Online Purchases appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh’s recently launched protein supplements brand SuperYou has raised Series A funding from Zerodha’s Nikhil and Nithin Kamath, the startup’s cofounder Nikunj Biyani told Inc42.

The startup received the funding from Rainmatter Capital, the venture capital arm of Zerodha. However, Biyani didn’t disclose the funding amount.

Launched in November, SuperYou was founded under venture studio Think9 Consumer. Singh teamed up with Biyani, the nephew of Future Group founder Kishore Biyani, to launch the venture.

SuperYou currently sells protein wafers in various flavours. It plans to utilise the fresh capital to scale up production and launch protein products in various categories such as breakfast cereals, biscuits, powder, and snacks.

“We want India to transform from a protein deficient to protein sufficient country. For this we will bring protein in different forms,” Biyani said. 

The cofounder added that the startup has priced its products aggressively to make it accessible to more users.

SuperYou plans to invest INR 40 Cr to INR 50 Cr over time and aims to achieve INR 500 Cr revenue within the next five years.

Currently, SuperYou sells its products via its website, and platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, Zepto, Blinkit, and Swiggy Instamart. The startup’s products can also be found in offline retail stores such as Reliance Fresh, Noble Plus, WellnessForever, and 7/11 among others. 

SuperYou is the latest venture of Think9 Consumer, which counts the likes of The Good Bug, Kingdom of White, Sorrentina, among others, under its portfolio.

Similarly, SuperYou is an addition to the ever expanding health and fitness portfolio of Rainmatter Capital. Ditch The Guilt, Evolved Foods, and Fittr are among the over 20 health and fitness startups in its portfolio.

The funding comes at a time when health and wellness focussed brands are seeing a lot of interest from investors amid rising awareness about healthy lifestyle. Last month, The Good Bug, a gut health and wellness D2C brand founded by Keshav Biyani, cousin of Nikunj Biyani, also bagged funding. Inc42 exclusively reported that the startup raised $3.5 Mn in its extended Series A funding round from Sharrp Ventures – the family office of Marcio Group chairman Harsh Mariwala. 

Zydus Wellness, the maker of Complan, has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Naturell, the owner of Max Protein, for INR 390 Cr. Last year, FMCG major ITC also acquired Yoga Bar.

The post Exclusive: Ranveer Singh’s SuperYou Bags Funding From Kamath Brothers appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Electric two-wheeler maker Ultraviolette Automotive has raised INR 130 Cr ($15.3 Mn) in a fresh round of funding from its existing investor Zoho, Lingotto (formerly known as Exor Capital), Mudhal Partners, and Ojas Consultation.

Zoho led the funding round with an infusion of INR 90 Cr, the startup’s regulatory filing showed. 

Mails, calls, and text messages sent to Ultraviolette founder Niraj Rajmohan and the startup seeking further details about the funding round didn’t elicit any response till the time of publishing this story. 

Earlier this year, Ultraviolette cofounder and CTO Rajmohan said that the startup was likely to raise $100 Mn. 

Founded in 2016 by Narayan Subramaniam and Rajmohan, Bengaluru-based Ultraviolette Automotive manufactures electric bikes.  

Including the latest funding, the startup has raised a total capital of $75 Mn. It counts Qualcomm, TVS Motor, among others, as its investors. 

Ultraviolette launched its first bike, F77, in India in late 2022. Last month, it launched the F77 Mach 2 at the 110th edition of EICMA, an annual trade show  in Milan. 

The F77 MACH 2, designed and produced in India, has a 10.3 kWh battery pack, the largest in the country. It also features cell-level fuse technology and an IP-67 rated enclosure.

The startup has started exporting this model to the European market, with primary focus on Italy, Spain, France, Germany, and the UK. The ebike is expected to be priced between 9,000 euros to 11,000 euros in Europe, depending on government incentives and taxes.

On the financial front, Ultraviolette incurred a net loss of INR 61.5 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) on an operating revenue of INR 15 Cr. 

In the electric two-wheeler industry, the startup primarily competes against the likes of Ola Electric, Ather Energy, Revolt, Hero, among others. 

The post Exclusive: Ultraviolette Raises INR 130 Cr From Zoho, Others appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Delhi-NCR-based MasterChow has raised $6.5 Mn in its Series A round led by Singapore-based Tanglin Venture Partners, sources told Inc42. 

The funding round also saw participation from Peak XV Partners’ Surge, Anicut Capital, the D2C brand’s existing investor WEH Ventures, among others. 

MasterChow plans to utilise the fresh capital for launch of new products and expanding its offline presence. 

The ready-to-cook brand’s founders, Sidharth Madan and Vidur Kataria, declined to comment on Inc42’s queries about the funding round.

The fresh funding comes almost a year after MasterChow raised $3.2 Mn in its Pre-Series A round from Surge and other investors. This funding round was unreported till now.

“MasterChow wants to become a household name with their noodles, sauces and condiments,” one of the sources said, adding that the startup’s ARR for the ongoing financial year (FY25) is at INR 50 Cr. 

Founded in 2020 by Madan and Kataria, MasterChow is a ready-to-cook Asian cuisine brand that offers a range of premium Asian pantry staples like noodles, stir fry sauces, dips, among others. 

The startup recently onboarded renowned chef Ranveer Brar as its brand ambassador. 

In 2022, MasterChow had raised $1.2 Mn in a funding round led by Anicut. Mumbai-based WEH Ventures, Fluid Ventures, and a few angel investors were also part of the round. 

 Including the latest fundraise, the D2C brand has raised a total funding of about $10 Mn till date.

The development comes on the heels of MasterChow’s competitor Yu Foods raising its Series B funding. Last month, Inc42 exclusively reported that Yu Foods bagged $6.5 Mn from ace investor Ashish Kacholia and Asian Paints Promoter Group. 

MasterChow competes against FMCG giants like Nestle, Orkla (earlier known as MTR Foods), Nissin, ITC, among others. In the D2C space, it competes against the likes of Yu Foods and Veeba. 

The post Exclusive: MasterChow Raises $6.5 Mn From Tanglin Venture, Peak XV’s Surge appeared first on Inc42 Media.

“Once a startup reaches a certain level of success, it becomes necessary to invest in R&D and be on your toes as the industry changes very fast,” Aman Gupta, cofounder and CMO of boAt had said in late 2021. 

At the time, the company was growing at over 2X speed and was minting profit to the tune of INR 69 Cr. Of course, that was also the time when India’s D2C boom was in a full swing. 

Fast forward to 2024, Gupta and boAt seem to have strayed away from this mantra, as the startup has slipped into the red, and more critically, for the first time, since its inception has reported dip in its revenue in the year ending March 2024. 

Soon after this came reports suggesting that boAt is reconsidering to go for an IPO, after pulling out in 2021 following the end of the high liquidity era. 

Since then, many startups have gone on to a public listing, but one thing that’s become increasingly clear is that companies hitting the stock markets need to have a clear path to profitability, a grip on unit economics and be a dominant player in their domain. 

It’s not clear if the startup makes the cut on any of these counts. Competition — even homegrown — in the space is growing and many of the scaled up electronics and tech giants are moving towards boAt’s price point and market positioning.  

Even in terms of market share in the key TWS (true wireless stereo) category, boAt has slipped from 29.3% in 2022 to 26% in 2023, according to data from IDC. But 2021 was not that long ago — what exactly changed for boAt in the past three years such that the company has fallen into this state? 

Market Share, Revenue Dips

Founded in 2015 by Aman Gupta and Sameer Mehta, boAt is primarily a consumer audio company which is known for manufacturing affordable products which includes wired and TWS earphones, headphones and speakers. The company also sells smart watches, chargers, trimmers, power banks, among other accessories.

While boAt has forayed into different products, to date its audio revenue contributes to 80% of its overall operating revenue. 

However, being an industry leader in the affordable audio segment, the startup saw a tepid growth in audio segment. For instance, in FY24, the startup’s audio segment reported an operating revenue of INR 2,459.2 Cr, a 5% higher than INR 2,350.8 Cr in FY23.

If we take a cursory glance at the numbers, boAt’s operating revenue dipped by almost 8% to INR 3,117.7 Cr in FY24.

While boAt needs to be commended for its efforts to bring down its loss drastically to INR 80 Cr from INR 129 Cr in FY23, eyebrows were raised last year when the startup reported its first loss since its inception, almost wiping off its cumulative profit since inception.

Revenue dip was not the only concerning factor for boAt. In fact, in the calendar year 2023, despite dominating the audio space, the startup lost its market share.

One primary reason behind this could be attributed to the startup losing its market share in the audio segment. According to a IDC report in the calendar year 2023, boAt’s TWS market share plummeted to 26% from 29.3% in CY23.

While it is possible that boAt’s revenue share has increased, there’s no way of tracking that. IDC tracks shipments of units, which is an analog for market share.  

The homegrown rivals for boAt have also not exactly cracked profits and do not have significantly higher revenue momentum, but their numbers for 2023 do make for better reading than boAt. 

For instance, Boult Audio has gained TWS share of 10.7% in CY23 from 6.5% in CY22.

Even in terms of YoY growth (read shipments), boAt’s saw a mere 25.2% rise, whereas its competitors Boult saw a 136% rise, and Noise witnessed a 38.8%

“When a market has reached maturity, with a higher penetration, who will buy? For instance, 100 people own 100 earphones, and they will only buy when the product is broken. Hence, there’s marginal growth,” said a market analyst who tracks this space closely. 

It goes without saying that products in the affordable category are more prone to manufacturing defects and inconsistencies. But consumers are unlikely to go back to a brand with poor quality. Many of them might consider spending more on global brands.  

What makes matters worse for Indian brands is that international players such as JBL, Sony, Jabra and even smartphone brands such as Oppo and Realme have introduced affordable TWS products with comparable build and audio quality. 

These are also frequently on sale on ecommerce marketplaces, since manufacturers typically set an MRP with higher margin, and their arrangements with these marketplaces extends to other categories such as smartphones. 

A quick glance at Flipkart’s average price of the top four products for boAt is INR 1,199, almost at par with Boult’s, whose average cost was INR 1,299. Another homegrown brand Noise’s products are typically listed for INR 899 on Flipkart. 

On the other hand smartphone manufacturers with higher economies of scale and better distribution such as Oppo price their products around INR 2,000, similar to Realme. 

This indicates that the average price of products from Noise, Boult and boAt is not that far away from Realme or Oppo. In fact, the smartphone brands may even have the scale to lower this price further. 

Besides, boAt will keep a close watch on the upcoming brands such as Nothing, a UK-based smartphone brand which has managed to gain market presence with its innovative product designs. In fact, in the overall wearable market, Nothing and its sister brand CMF witnessed 308% growth in terms of product shipments, the highest in the category.

Industry analysts believe that innovation in the audio segment in particular has stagnated, with pricing being the only differentiation. Can boAt bank on non-audio products to break its rut? 

boAt Needs To ‘Watch’ Out

For the longest time, boAt was synonymous with affordable audio products, but the company forayed into the smartwatch market in 2020. Since then it has spent heavily in its research and development to seed the smartwatch category, and also ventured into other wearables such as smart ring in 2024. 

However, the smartwatch category hasn’t quite taken off for boAt, despite Aman Gupta brandishing one on his palm in most public appearances, including on Shark Tank India. 

In FY24, boAt saw a 44% decline in its revenue generation from its smartwatches. This category brought in INR 550.3 Cr in revenue, but pales in comparison to the INR 910.6 Cr in FY23. In fact, the FY24 wearable revenue is more comparable to FY22, when boAt generated INR 515.5 Cr from this segment. 

The IDC report shows a decline in market share in 2023 to 14% from 18.8% in 2022. This overlaps with the first nine months of FY24. 

While the startup has lost market share in 2023, the same could be said for almost all the brands. Fire-Boltt lost a marginal market share to 24.3%, whereas Noise, whose primary source of revenue is smartwatches, saw its market share dip to 22.1% from 27.2%.

According to research analysts that we spoke to, the drop in the demand for smartwatches could be attributed to the growing popularity of non-branded watches. These smartwatches are offering cheap alternatives of popular models, and are even bundled with multiple watch straps. 

With that said, boAt has drastically reduced its smartwatch launches. As per industry sources, boAt has drastically reduced its smartwatch launches earlier this year. The startup climbed to the second spot in terms of smartwatch market share in Q3 CY24 with 16.8%, right behind Noise, which enjoys a market share of 27.4%.

Will this momentum continue in FY25? For boAt, smartwatches are a big category but the drop in revenue is a major red flag. And one that can have an overhang on boAt’s overall profitability, given the investment in R&D. 

Why boAt Is Slowing Down 

That was the story of 2023 and FY24. What is the situation on the ground right now for the Aman Gupta-led company, and has it taken measures to cut its losses? 

Data shows that the July-September quarter of 2024 was rather great for boAt. The latest IDC report said the startup’s market share in wearable devices increased from 29.8% to 32.1% YoY Q3 CY24. 

As per analysts, the startup has managed to clear its older inventory this year, giving it the opportunity to reconsider its product strategy and mix going forward. Gupta will have to recalibrate the manufacturing to meet demand for the right products. 

Procurement cost, which is central to manufacturing and assembling electronics, is one of the biggest expenditures for boAt. In FY24, the startup managed to reduce this by 12% to INR 2,300 Cr, from INR 2,610.4 Cr in FY23. Further, advertising expenditure dropped by 14.4% to INR 365.6 Cr in FY24. 

With the $60 Mn raised in 2022, boAt also has a competitive edge over other audio and wearable OEMs to invest in research and development. 

In fact, the primary reason for the startup’s losses was the establishment of its manufacturing plant in India. With the factory now operational, boAt will be looking to improve its economies of scale. 

All these factors are likely to help boAt bring down its losses further in FY25. In fact, the startup did manage to turn EBITDA positive in FY24, reporting INR 14 Cr before taxes against INR 50 Cr loss in FY23. 

However, the drop in revenue is a huge red flag and one has to wonder whether boAt has taken a conscious decision to scale down in order to improve its bottom line. 

Analysts believe that product innovation cannot stop for electronics companies and R&D investments have to be ongoing. Any slow down here has a real impact on sales, as consumer demand and preferences are dictated by larger companies with significantly more resources. 

There’s undoubtedly a whole new opportunity ahead with the rise of AR and VR, AI-enabled devices and more, and what will be interesting to see is whether boAt turns its attention to these new categories. 

As more and more manufacturers enter this space, the adoption will trickle down to India from the west and the likes of boAt will have another opportunity for disruption.

But that is still some away — for the time being, boAt is navigating in a narrow stretch of the sea and other vessels will get in its way. Can it get to clear waters and add some distance between itself and its rivals?

Edited By Nikhil Subramaniam

The post Can boAt Return To Its Old Glory? appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Amid the rising competition in the quick commerce space, PhonePe’s Pincode has become the latest entrant in the segment. The ecommerce app is piloting a quick delivery service in parts of Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad and Varanasi under which it delivers groceries and other products in 10-20 minutes, sources told Inc42.

The products will be delivered by Pincode’s delivery executives, and delivery partners of logistics companies such as Shadowfax and Loadshare. 

Unlike most quick commerce players, Pincode doesn’t have a dark store model. Instead, it has a marketplace model, under which it brings together neighbourhood kirana stores and buyers on its platform. 

“We figured delivery from a neighborhood kirana store or a supermarket within 20 minutes can be done without setting up dark stores and that is what we are doing,” one of the sources said.

This model eliminates the need for costly inventory storage or warehouse management, and Pincode believes that this asset-light approach can benefit both retailers and customers.

In the pilot stage, customers can get groceries, personal care products, sports equipment, among others in 10-20 minutes.

Inc42 has reached out to PhonePe seeking additional information about the pilot. The story will be updated on receiving a response. 

PhonePe initially launched Pincode app in Bengaluru in April 2023 to sell groceries, apparel, food and technology products on the  Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) platform. Back then, Pincode was primarily a buyer-side app. However, since last quarter, the startup has moved away from the ONDC network as it began developing its own marketplace. Earlier this year, Pincode exited several categories like fashion, grocery and electronics from the network. 

Pincode is now focusing more on the seller-side experience on the app. 

With the entry into the quick commerce space, it would take on the likes of Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, Zepto, and Big Basket.

The development comes at a time when major players in the quick commerce space are firming up their expansion plans. To fuel this expansion, Zepto has raised over $1.3 Bn across three funding rounds in 2024 so far. 

Swiggy, which recently made its public market debut, plans to use a part of the capital raised through its initial public offering (IPO) to expand the dark store network of Instamart. Meanwhile, Zomato opened its INR 8,500 Cr qualified institutional placement on Monday (November 26) . It will use INR 2,137 Cr from this to set up Blinkit’s dark stores and warehouses.

It must be highlighted that Pincode’s quick commerce delivery model is similar to what Dunzo’s model was, before it decided to set up its dark stores. 

In the quick commerce space, Pincode will also compete with Flipkart Minutes. PhonePe demerged from Flipkart last year. 

The post Exclusive: PhonePe’s Pincode Pilots 20-Mins Delivery To Take On Zepto, Blinkit appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Mumbai-based D2C brand SUGAR Cosmetics is set to raise INR 38 Cr ($4.5 Mn) from its existing investors Anicut Equity Continuum Fund, Elevation Capital, Malabar Investment, L Catterton, among others, its regulatory filing showed. 

As per Inc42’s calculations, the startup secured the fresh funding round at a valuation of INR 2,600- INR 2,700 Cr. This is almost the same valuation at which it raised $50 Mn in 2022. 

Responding to Inc42’s queries on the development, SUGAR cofounder and COO Kaushik Mukherjee said, “The investors who you have named are all existing shareholders of the company and some of the tranches of their investments may come into the company at different timelines.”

The fresh development has come almost a year after Malabar Investments acquired a stake worth INR 80 Cr in SUGAR from its existing investors – India Quotient and RB Investments. 

Sources told Inc42 that the startup may see another secondary transaction next year, giving exit to more of its early investors. 

SUGAR will likely use the fresh capital to scale Quench Botanics, a Korean Skincare brand it launched last year with Kareena Kapoor, the sources added.

Mukherjee said, “Our investments in FY25 are largely targeted towards scaling our skincare brand Quench Botanics that has seen strong traction in quick commerce and other ecommerce portals in the past six months. We have also earmarked some capital to build distribution for our more affordable range of colour cosmetics under the SUGAR POP sub-brand.”

Besides, the startup is also working to strengthen the distribution network of SUGAR POP. 

In the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), SUGAR reported an operating revenue of INR 505.1 Cr, a 20% increase from INR 420 Cr in the previous fiscal year.

The aforementioned sources said that while the startup intends to scale the business, the management is more focused on improving its bottom line. This was reflected in their FY24 financials, as the startup managed to narrow its loss by 11% to INR 67.6 Cr . 

SUGAR was founded by husband-wife duo of Vineeta Singh and Kaushik Mukherjee in 2015 as a D2C brand, with only an online platform. However, with omnichannel becoming the norm, the startup later followed the same model. Today, it claims to have a presence in over 45,000 retail stores across India. It has raised a total funding of around $90 Mn till date. 

The startup competes with the likes of Mamaearth, Nykaa, and international players such as Maybelline and Loreal, among others, in the fast-growing Indian beauty and personal care segment.

The post Exclusive: SUGAR Cosmetics To Raise $4.5 Mn From Anicut, Malabar At Flat Valuation appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Cloud kitchen startup Biryani By Kilo has raised about $2 Mn (INR 16.5 Cr) from Dubai-based investment firm Pulsar Capital, as per its regulatory filings.

As per Inc42 calculations, Biryani By Kilo raised the funding at a valuation of about $100 Mn. 

The funding seems to be a part of a bigger round being raised by the Delhi NCR-based startup. Biryani By Kilo cofounder and CEO Vishal Jindal declined to comment on Inc42’s queries about the funding round. 

Pulsar Capital is a private equity firm run by former TPG partner Vish Nair. It counts healthcare provider TruDoc and ecommerce enabler Assidus in its current portfolio. 

The funding round comes almost a year after Biryani By Kilo raised $9 Mn from its existing investors Alpha Wave Ventures, Vevek Ventures, DSP HMK Holdings, IvyCap Ventures, Incred Wealth, Clear Bridge Ventures, among others. 

Founded in 2015 by Jindal and Kaushik Roy, Biryani By Kilo sells biryanis, kebabs, kormas, and desserts. It has raised a total funding of $52 Mn till date and also counts Falcon Edge Capital, IvyCap Ventures, among others, as its investors.

The startup claims to have over 100 outlets across the country, including in major cities such as Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Delhi-NCR. It offers deliveries across more than 45 cities. 

Biryani By Kilo primarily competes with Rebel Foods’ Behrouz Biryani and Biryani Blues, Bengaluru-based Potful, among others.

In FY22, the startup’s net loss surged 2.7X to INR 42.6 Cr from INR 15.6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. Sales increased 2X to INR 132.6 Cr from INR 65.2 Cr in FY21.  

On the back of the growth of foodtech platforms like Zomato and Swiggy, a number of cloud kitchen startups have emerged in the country over the last few years. The size of the cloud kitchen market is expected to cross the $3 Bn mark by FY31.

The post Exclusive: Biryani By Kilo Raises $2 Mn From Pulsar Capital appeared first on Inc42 Media.