Bengaluru-based industrial robotics startup Ati Motors has raised $20 Mn (INR 172.7 Cr) in a Series B funding round co-led by Walden Catalyst Ventures (WCV) and NGP Capital (NGP). 

The round also saw participation from existing investors, including True Ventures, Exfinity Venture Partners, Athera Venture Partners and Blume Ventures.

The company plans to use the fresh capital to boost product development and expand its market presence in North America and APAC.

Recently, the company set up operations in Mexico and has bolstered its presence across the US, India, and Southeast Asia. Additionally, it is currently expanding its North American headquarters in Detroit, MI.

Saurabh Chandra, cofounder and CEO of Ati Motors, said, “This funding will accelerate our ability to leverage our extensive real-world dataset to develop next-generation AI models and further advance our industrial autonomy platform.”

Founded in 2017 by Saurabh Chandra, Ati Motors is an autonomous mobile robot manufacturer that helps manufacturers in various sectors optimise productivity and streamline operations by deploying its robotics technology. The startup, which has focused on the automobile sector so far, counts the likes of TVS Motor, CEAT, and Hyundai among its clients. 

Ati Motors specialises in robotics, AI, and manufacturing. It has deployed a host of Sherpa robots across 40 leading manufacturers, including Forvia and Hyundai, with multiple scaled deployments in North America.

The fresh proceeds will also accelerate development and deployment of its robotic workforce, leveraging one of the largest factory datasets for autonomous movement. 

The startup raised $17 Mn in funding prior to this round. In 2023, the Bengaluru-based startup raised $10.85 Mn in its Series A funding round led by Silicon Valley-based venture capitalist (VC) True Ventures. 

In 2021, it secured $3.5 Mn in a Pre-Series A round. Before that, it raised seed funding from Village Global, a US-based early-stage VC backed by notable investors such as Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Jeff Bezos.

Ati Motors competes with the likes of GreyOrange and Ottonomy, among several others.

The post Ati Motors Nets $20 Mn To Power Industrial Automation With AI appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Proptech startup Landeed has raised $5 Mn (INR 43.1 Cr) in a fresh funding round led by 10x Founders Fund, along with participation from Oliver Jung, Paradigm Shift, Pioneer Fund, Jeffrey Epstein, Onboard founder and Aaron King, Snapdocs founder, among others.

The company plans to use the fresh capital to fuel launch of Landeed Labs, a division focused on enhancing the company’s AI and machine learning capabilities.

Apart from this, the proceeds will also be deployed to develop cutting-edge AI-driven solutions, recruit top STEM talent and advance product innovation to revolutionise property title searches and real estate transactions.

Sanjay Mandava, cofounder and CEO of Landeed, said, “With additional resources, we will be hiring some of the best STEM and technical talent in the country to augment the exceptional growth in our core business. We still have the majority of our funds from our seed round in the bank account so you’ll see us relentlessly shipping new products and firing on all cylinders. We never do what we do to be second best.”

Founded in 2022 by Sanjay Mandava, ZJ Lin and Jonathan Richards, Landeed is transforming property due diligence for all parties involved, facilitating seamless communication and efficient deal closures providing innovative solutions for property title searches.

Landeed claims to address the challenges of India’s fragmented and outdated property records by consolidating data from 24 states into a unified, AI-powered platform. It simplifies title verification by providing instant access to ownership history, transaction records, and encumbrance details, ensuring transparency and efficiency in property transactions.

The company claims to have achieved 22X growth since its inception and empower more than 1 Lakh users, including property owners, bankers, and developers. Through Landeed Labs, it aims to further AI and machine learning innovations, transforming real estate transactions across India and globally.

The Hyderabad-based firm previously raised an undisclosed amount last year as part of its seed funding round from Paradigm Shift VC. Prior to that, it raised INR 69.3 Cr ($8.3 Mn) in a seed funding round from Y Combinator, Draper Associates and Bayhouse Capital.

The post Landeed Bags $5 Mn To Boost Its AI, ML Stacks appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Quick commerce platform Zepto is reportedly looking to increase its initial public offering (IPO) size to $800 Mn–$1 Bn, including secondaries.

According to an ET report, its CEO, Aadit Palicha, recently discussed the company’s IPO plans with top mutual funds. Sources told ET that Zepto is projecting gross sales of $5.5 Bn in the final quarter of FY26 while achieving positive EBITDA (excluding ESOPs).

This projection is nearly equivalent to the annual gross sales of the entire quick commerce industry in the previous calendar year, according to several brokerages.

Inc42 has reached out to the company, and the story will be updated based on the responses. 

Zepto initiated its IPO plans in mid-2024, initially targeting a $450 Mn primary capital raise. According to sources, the offering size is now expected to exceed $800 Mn, including $300–400 Mn in shares sold via an offer for sale (OFS) and an increased primary fundraise through new share issuance.

Yesterday (January 21), Palicha held a town hall to update employees on the company’s financial performance and its plans for an IPO this year, according to ET.

The Bengaluru-based startup has also surpassed 900 dark stores, exceeding its earlier target of 700 by March. The company is now aiming to expand its network to approximately 1,000 stores.

Founded in 2021 by Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, Zepto currently operates under a B2B model. Its parent, Kiranakart Technologies, procures goods directly from brands and sells them exclusively to its licensee companies, including the likes of Geddit Convenience, Drogheria Sellers and Commodum Groceries.

The quick commerce firm earns revenue by levying a fee on these companies for using its brand and platform.

The development comes at a time when the company has already obtained the necessary permissions to relocate its base from Singapore to India ahead of the public listing.

As part of its IPO plans, it has also set up a new entity, Zepto Marketplace Private Limited, as part of its restructuring plans.

Registered in October last year, this new entity is expected to facilitate a shift from Zepto’s current B2B2C structure to a marketplace model, similar to the strategies employed by competitors like Zomato-owned Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart.

Meanwhile, the quick commerce giant grabbed headlines last year after raising a whopping $1.3 Bn in funding and outpacing Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart in terms of revenue.

Amid the rising competition in the quick commerce space, the Palicha-led company is also doubling down on its presence in India. While Zepto was operational in seven cities in 2023, this number rose to 35 last year and its dark store count doubled to 650 from 300 earlier.

The post Zepto Looking To Increase IPO Size To $800 Mn – $1 Bn: Report appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Agritech startup DeHaat has bought Olam Agri-owned farm advisory platform AgriCentral through an all-cash business transfer agreement.

With this strategic acquisition, DeHaat looks to expand its suite of digital services for farmers, increase reach among the farming community and strengthen its position as India’s largest full-stack agritech platform.

AgriCentral is an app-based platform for Indian farmers with over 10 Mn users. Founded in 2018, it offers real-time crop prices, personalised crop planning, health diagnostics, and community interaction. 

Leveraging technologies like GPS, satellite imagery, big data, machine learning, and image analytics, AgriCentral drives the transition to digital farming.

DeHaat cofounder and CEO Shashank Kumar said, “DeHaat has successfully developed robust supply chain capabilities to offer 360-degree agricultural solutions to Indian farmers across more than 120,000 villages through a network of over 15,000 DeHaat Centres.”

“AgriCentral’s cost-efficient digital capabilities will complement our efforts in reaching millions of underserved farmers with our full-stack agri value chain offerings. It will also enable us to introduce multiple value-added services such as precision advisory, mechanisation, insurance, and cattle advisory to enhance the livelihoods of our farmers,” he added.

With the deal, DeHaat will now serve over 12 Mn farmers nationwide and aims to surpass its 2024 farmer network target.

Founded in 2012 by Kumar and Amrendra Singh, DeHaat is a comprehensive agritech platform that provides end-to-end agricultural services to farmers. This includes quality agricultural inputs, personalised farm advice, financial access, and market connections to sell their produce. The startup has raised $221 Mn from investors, including Temasek and Prosus Ventures, and was last valued at $700 Mn.

The company has expanded its digital network to over 15,000 DeHaat centres across 11 states, offering personalised crop advisory and digital farmer services to 2.7 Mn farmers. Through these centres, DeHaat distributes more than 3,000 agricultural inputs and has secured exclusive distribution partnerships with 10+ global bio agri-input innovators to support sustainable agriculture.

The Gurugram-based startup’s consolidated net loss widened by 3.76% to INR 1,133.1 Cr in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 1,094.4 Cr a year ago, largely due to a surge in overall expenses.

However, it managed to trim its operating losses by 42% YoY in FY24 and was on track to achieve breakeven by the last quarter of the ongoing financial year (Q4 FY25).

The post DeHaat Buys AgriCentral To Expand Digital Services Suite For Farmers appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Office space management startup Workie has raised INR 13 Cr ($1.5 Mn) in an equity funding round to fuel its expansion plans and strengthen market leadership.

The round was led by a host of backers, including Sunil Singhania family office, NAV Capital, Raman Roy, Dharmendra Jain, Gaurav Singhvi and Sunil Singhvi among others.

“At Workie, we empower businesses to thrive without the burden of traditional office leasing costs and methods. Our clients enjoy greater flexibility, cost savings and opportunities to expand, and grow up to 10x faster than conventional methods,” said Sawan Laddha, founder and CEO of Workie.

Founded in 2017 by Laddha, Workie is a co-working space provider that claims to transform commercial properties into flexible, cost-effective workspaces for businesses of all sizes. 

It specialises in build-to-suit office solutions and offers ready-to-move-in and co-working spaces across various cities. It also provides businesses with tailored office spaces, ensuring cost efficiency and low investment, while handling all operational aspects.

With over 150 clients such as Zomato, Bajaj, Patanjali, Schneider, and OYO, Workie claims to manage 15,000 seats across 50 prime locations, covering 10,00,000 sq. ft. of commercial space in India. The startup operates in more than 15 cities, including Indore, Mumbai, Chennai, Pune, and Bengaluru.

Post-pandemic, the coworking space sector has seen significant growth driven by the return to office. As companies struggle to find affordable and suitable office spaces, the demand for flexible, cost-effective coworking solutions has surged. This supply-demand gap has fueled the expansion of coworking startups, with companies like Awfis, SmartWorks, and DevX making successful IPOs, and others like Indiqube and WeWork India preparing to go public.

In November last year, coworking startup Innov8 sought to raise INR 100 Cr ($11.9 Mn) in a funding round at a valuation of INR 1,200 Cr ($142.2 Mn).

Meanwhile, SmartWorks raised $12 Mn (around INR 100 Cr) in June, led by Ananta Capital, the backer of Bella Vita Organic.

The post Office Space Management Startup Workie Bags Funding To Boost Expansion appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Known for its rich religious customs, traditions and heritage, India has witnessed an exponential rise in the number of spiritual tech startups in the last few years. Not to mention, what has fuelled the ambitions of the nation’s new-age entrepreneurs to enter this fray is the country’s lucrative spiritual market, which is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10% until 2032 from $58.56 Bn in 2023.

A prime example of this transition was witnessed last year during the consecration of the Ayodhya Temple — the event that not only gave this industry a boost but also made spiritual tech startups form a beeline with their offerings, raking in double-digit growth.

While the consecration of the Ayodhya Temple gave this sector a renewed push, this year’s Mahakumbh, being held at Prayagraj after 12 years, is all set to give the sector yet another shot in the arm.     

To conclude on February 26, the Mahakumbh is a grand confluence of faith, culture, and tradition and attracts millions of pilgrims from around the world.

The Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) forecasts the Mahakumbh Mela 2025 to generate over INR 2 Lakh Cr in revenue for Uttar Pradesh over its 45-day duration. Of this, around INR 17,310 Cr is expected from retail spending on essentials like food, lodging, healthcare, and religious items.

Therefore, everyone ranging from spiritual tech platforms like Sri Mandir, VAMA, AppsForBharat and Astrotalk to UPI giants such as PhonePe and Paytm and food delivery startups such as WAAYU and CHUK have come forward to claim their share.

Now, let’s dive deeper into understanding what this year’s Mahakumbh means for many of these brands, all while taking a closer look at how some of these players are capitalising on this unique event.

Mahakumbh: A Startup Gold Rush?

With the rise of digital platforms and the increasing importance of consumer engagement, brands are leveraging this event to connect with their consumers in a number of innovative ways. 

While legacy players like Dabur, HUL, and P&G have partnered with restaurants to promote their products, some of them have even stocked their offerings at women’s changing rooms and baby care spaces.

While PhonePe has launched insurance for pilgrims and special QR codes to simplify financial transactions, Paytm is offering enhanced convenience with payment options, complemented by cashback and reward campaigns.

Meanwhile, smart parking management startup Park+ is leveraging AI to help pilgrims prebook spots for their vehicles. The startup is also helping them with FASTag-enabled payments, EV charging stations, and 24/7 security. 

“Our AI solutions will monitor parking fill rates, identify traffic bottlenecks, and ensure seamless FASTag-enabled entries and exits,” said Amit Lakhotia, the founder & CEO, of Park+.

The Mahakumbh is also providing opportunities to over 50,000 SMEs, boosting local vendors and artisans and positioning the event as a significant economic driver.

However, spiritual tech startups are to steal the show. Take AppsForBharat for instance. Founded by Prashant Sachan, the startup has made spiritual journeys accessible to everyone through its app, Sri Mandir. 

The app allows users to create virtual temples, perform rituals, and even get Gangajal delivered to their doorsteps, making the Mahakumbh experience available to those who cannot attend it. 

Astrotalk is another spiritual tech startup, which is enabling devotees to seek guidance from spiritual experts remotely during the event.  

Meanwhile, newcomers are also leveraging the Mahakumbh. Three-year-old WAAYU is delivering sacred Mahaprasad to homes across India. 

By partnering with ONDC buyer apps like Paytm, Snapdeal, and DigiHaat, WAAYU is ensuring that people everywhere can participate in the spiritual offerings of the event.

“With the scale of economic activities likely to be generated from this 45-day event, marketers are gearing up in full force. This event also provides many startup and service providers the chance to step up and establish themselves,” said Harish Bijoor, a business and brand strategy expert.

The primary reason brands are capitalising on this massive event is the immense growth potential it offers, particularly in terms of increased sales, user acquisition, and overall brand visibility, he added.

Giving heft to Bijoor’s statement, the cofounders of WAAYU said that they are aiming for strong brand visibility during Mahakumbh 2025. 

“While monetary ROI isn’t a focus since the Prasad is offered at cost, branding opportunities and the goal of 1 Cr orders will significantly boost user acquisition for the WAAYU app,” the founders said.

Meanwhile, eco-friendly tableware brand CHUK has already experienced a surge in demand, with orders from the event accounting for 30% of its average monthly sales. “We expect this figure to grow as the event progresses,” said Pranay Pasricha, brand and marketing head at Pakka, CHUK’s parent company.

In line with the government’s initiative to make the Mahakumbh plastic-free, the startup is offering an eco-friendly and reliable solution for food service, helping reduce waste and promoting sustainability throughout the event.

The Mahakumbh Revenue-Making Machine

While the Mahakumbh, which started January 13, has already become a significant stage for spiritual tech startups, the accommodation and tourism sector is in for a bigger blast, followed by the food and beverages (F&B).

According to data shared by CAIT, the accommodation and tourism sector is projected to generate INR 40,000 Cr while the food and beverages industry is set to contribute INR 20,000 Cr. Similarly, religious items and offerings are also expected to yield INR 20,000 Cr.

Other than the aforementioned players expected to thrive during the 45-day event, several other brands and startups are poised to capitalise on Mahakumbh’s vast audience and cultural significance.

For instance, VAMA.app is expecting a 30-50% increase in app downloads and user engagement during the Mahakumbh. It already has over 2.5 Lakh transacting users on its platform. 

Founded in 2020 by Aacharya Dev, Himanshu Semwal, and Manu Jain, VAMA.app provides digital services such as e-pujas, e-darshans, and astrology. It has partnered with over 250 temples and has a network of more than 300 astrologers. 

Sri Mandir’s Sachan mentioned that based on historical trends and current engagement, they anticipate serving an additional 3 Lakh to 4 Lakh devotees via their online devotional services. He also expects a 40-50% increase in app downloads with devotees increasingly turning to digital solutions to connect with the spiritual event.

“Furthermore, we anticipate a 30-35% increase in revenue driven by our Mahakumbh campaign, reflecting the growing trust in our platform and its offerings,” he said.

From spiritual tech platforms connecting devotees digitally to eco-conscious brands championing sustainability, the Mahakumbh is not only the cradle of tradition but also the breeding ground for innovation and inclusivity. 

With enough opportunities for businesses of all sizes, the Mahakumbh proves that age-old traditions can thrive in harmony with modern entrepreneurship, ensuring a win-win for all.

[Edited by: Shishir Parasher]

The post The Spiritual Tech Gold Rush: Startups Bank On Billion-Dollar Mahakumbh 2025 Opportunity appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Quick commerce in India is evolving at a fast clip, growing beyond daily essentials and consumer durables. Gadgets and gizmos (even the iPhone16 family) now arrive at shoppers’ doorsteps within minutes, and food delivery is all set to follow suit. However, the biggest game changer could be the q-commerce foray into healthcare and pharmacy markets, with the 10-minute ambulance service, recently announced by Blinkit, looking like the cherry on top.        

The q-commerce model for medicines initially raised many eyebrows despite the convenience of speed. After all, these are not regular products to be delivered in a hurry but need to follow regulatory compliance at every step for the best possible outcomes. 

Yet, when pure-play grocery delivery platform BigBasket (a TATA enterprise), Walmart-owned ecommerce giant’s quick delivery vertical Flipkart Minutes, as well as quick commerce veterans Zomato’s Blinkit, Zepto and Swiggy Instamart, all joined the pharma race, the hook was quite clear. They wanted to leverage the core expertise – quick and efficient delivery – to maximise their cart value. In FY24, all three q-commerce players exceeded $1 Bn in GMV, indicating the kind of revenue ‘speed delivery’ could bring.

Unhappy with the quick-fix solutions – not many players in this space are from the healthcare domain or solely focussing on this vertical – a new startup (and bootstrapped at that) entered the fray with significant service differentiations. Aman Priyadarshi and Aniruddha Sen saw a big opportunity to address a pressing consumer need and further provide a host of related services for 360-degree healthcare.

The duo launched a full-featured, 24×7 medicine delivery platform called Plazza in November 2024, aiming to do doorstep deliveries in 15-17 minutes, and is currently operating from a single location in Bengaluru (Yemalur, to be precise). It initially partnered with seven licensed pharmacies and recently launched a Lifestore in Yemalur to maximise sales and optimise inventory management. 

Lifestores are regular pharmacies converted to Plazza-operated outlets via a franchise model, with the startup providing comprehensive support in areas like inventory management, software installation, workforce recruitment and customer acquisition through its platform. As the business expands, It plans to open two more Lifestores, one in the Electronic City and another in Haralur. 

Given these tie-ups, Plazza has instant access to an inventory of 10K+ health products, including prescription medicines, OTC drugs, supplements and personal care items. It also claims quick access to complex medications for post-operative care and cancer treatment.

The platform enables quick ordering via its app and website, offering multiple payment options, real-time order tracking and timely delivery. Its core revenue model is built on a profit-sharing arrangement with partner stores, while 20-25% of its earnings come from medicine retailing through its Lifestores. The average order value stands at INR 700.

Detailing the profit-sharing model, Priyadarshi said when medicines are sold at a profit (factoring in packaging cost and delivery charges), the partner shop gets a share for managing operations, and Plazza retains the rest for covering logistics, customer engagement and support services. Other revenue sources include brand promotions and shelf rentals, wherein companies pay to place their products in a Plazza store for fast shipping.     

To distinguish itself from players like Practo or Apollo 24/7 (it has also rolled out a 19-minute delivery model), Plazza is looking beyond delivery speed and convenience. It aims to emerge as a one-stop healthcare hub with a full spectrum of services such as doctor consultation, diagnostic tests, home nursing, home delivery of diagnostic equipment and access to personalised healthcare services through a subscription model. Its goal is to provide end-to-end services for hospital treatment, surgery, emergency assistance and therapy, making healthcare more accessible, fast and reliable.

The founders claim 1K sign-ups since its launch and are in talks to launch drone deliveries for hospitals (more on that later).

Asked how the Plazza model differs from pure-play quick commerce or same-day ecommerce deliveries, Priyadarshi said that the format and the intent could never be the same. 

“Health purchases are driven by high intent, but existing apps bury medicine tabs under multiple clicks. Moreover, healthcare needs to go beyond quick access to medicine. It should include easy replenishment, exploring alternatives and proactive consultations to save time,” said Priyadarshi. “Ecommerce platforms focus on increasing cart value with non-health items. When a health issue arises, people need quick, convenient health solutions, an area that the Swiggys and the Flipkarts are unlikely to address fully anytime soon.”

How A Health Crisis, Lessons From Kenko Paved The Path For Plazza

Home delivery of medicines took off at scale with online pharmacies coming into play. But their delivery windows frequently failed to meet emergency requirements. Offline pharmacies, accounting for 95-97% of the market share, provide home deliveries now and then. The process remains cumbersome, though, requiring customers to share prescriptions, discuss quantities and alternatives, and provide payment screenshots. As delivery times are usually unpredictable, many customers are compelled to visit their local medicine stores in person. Essentially, the medicine delivery market was ripe for disruption. 

However, Plazza was not born until Priyadarshi went through a personal emergency. His sister underwent a kidney transplant during the Covid-19 pandemic and his brush with critical healthcare exposed how broken the system was. Medicines were overpriced; hospitals did not provide ancillary services, and insurance did not cover post-operative care. 

At the time, he also met Sen, a longtime friend and former client at one of the startups Priyadarshi had launched. The serial entrepreneur was invited to help build Kenko, a healthcare financing startup founded by Sen in 2019. It also raised $13.7 Mn from Peak XV, Beenext, Orios Venture Partners and a clutch of angel investors.

Priyadarshi had limited experience in healthcare but joined Kenko in 2023, banking on his expertise in consumer internet companies. He had been with Zomato for nearly four years and founded two startups. The first was Ibism, where he developed a SaaS tool for business process automation, while DhoduDhodu provided logistics solutions to companies such as Paytm, MobiKwik, FT Cash, 1Mg and Freecharge.

“Back then, Kenko said the ecosystem was outdated and over-regulated, preventing new-age startups from entering the space. We tried to change the paradigm by designing subscription-based plans to cover the costs of OPD, medicines and healthcare products,” said Priyadarshi.  

He had built Zomato Gold, a similar concept in the consumer internet space, but it did not take off in the insurance sector. “I realised that we were trying to sell a subscription that people had not used before and promised them all those benefits later in life, something that never worked historically,” he added.

“At Kenko, demand was never an issue, but supply was,” said Sen. The startup focussed on meeting healthcare costs, but its lack of control over service quality was a growth barrier. So, a reverse approach was adopted when setting up Plazza. 

“Our initial focus is to provide convenient and reliable healthcare services. Later, we aim to introduce healthcare subscriptions to ensure customers receive high-quality healthcare without out-of-pocket expenses. First, we need to deliver on our promise.  That’s our thesis and our core philosophy,” the duo affirmed.

A few months after joining Kenko, Priyadarshi started exploring more sub-segments under healthcare and zeroed in on medicines, which are the biggest expense for most people. His research revealed that access to medicines remains a persistent pain point in many areas. “Even in metro cities like Bengaluru, basic medicines aren’t always easy to find,” he observed.    

To delve deeper, he also worked with a pharmacy in Bellandur for a couple of months and noticed a clear divide between online platforms and offline stores. Although e-pharmacies have existed since Covid times, 97% of people rely on physical outlets for quick access during medical emergencies. This insight inspired him to rethink the medicine delivery space and reinforced his resolve to launch Plazza. 

Priyadarshi left Kenko in February 2024 to explore this opportunity further and piloted the business idea as a small WhatsApp experiment. His hypothesis: Customers want to buy all their medicines from one place and always seek quick, reliable deliveries. 

“To validate this, I took orders via WhatsApp, promising fast delivery. On the very first day, I received more than 100 requests, and the next day, I sold medicines worth INR 10K. That’s when I realised there was a market here,” he said.

Meanwhile, Kenko halted operations last August as it ran out of funds and could not secure the insurance licence from the regulatory body. Sen joined the new venture in October after Priyadarshi learnt about Kenko’s shutdown and decided to bring his friend on board, drawn by his passion for the healthcare sector.

Coping With Limited Inventory And Logistics

Despite a clear-cut market opportunity, Plazza encountered a series of hurdles, ranging from inventory management to logistical roadblocks and the critical task of figuring out a sustainable business model.

The startup began as a platform that connected local pharmacies with end customers (basically, a medicine marketplace). But it quickly became clear that local pharmacies often struggled to provide medicines beyond common prescriptions. 

“Take Bengaluru, for instance, a city with a robust market for dermatology products, especially skin and haircare items. But many local pharmacies don’t stock these products. Likewise, new moms frequently need specialised babycare items but fail to find them locally,” explained Priyadarshi. 

Realising inventory management would be a major bottleneck, the founders pivoted and tied up with good-quality pharmacies. It also forged unique partnerships and launched Lifestores, a concept similar to Blinkit’s dark stores or mini-warehouses, enabling quick deliveries.

Plazza now operates within a limited delivery radius and uses bikes and Yulu EVs for deliveries. Delivery times are automatically calculated, factoring in customer location, traffic conditions, driver availability and packing time. The startup employs gig workers, keeping the business model asset-light. Its drivers also benefit from handling lighter loads and enjoy better work quality. The entire operation is managed in-house following a full-stack approach.

“Delivering medicines can be extremely challenging for several reasons. All team members are well-versed in critical details like drug expiration dates, alternative medicines and timely delivery. This isn’t a casual or luxury business. The stakes are incredibly high, and with our limited resources, it takes time to streamline processes,” added Priyadarshi.

What’s Next For Plazza?

The startup is poised for selective expansion, starting with Bengaluru, before branching into other cities metros like Delhi and Hyderabad and smaller markets such as Nagpur, Jamshedpur, Indore and Chandigarh. “Once we establish the product-market fit, we will expand strategically, learning from larger cities before entering smaller ones,” the founders said. 

Setting up more Lifestores is another mandate to meet the unique challenges of quick commerce in the pharma space. Unlike grocery delivery, pharmaceutical/healthcare logistics requires a more nuanced approach and a skilled workforce to manage operations. Think of temperature-controlled storage and delivery, safe transportation, and other critical factors contributing to product efficacy and safety. Even slight deviations from regulatory standards can impact people’s health.  

However, Priyadarshi noted that retail pharmacy is still stuck in the traditional mode, where small teams grapple with workload and compliance issues. Building a robust tech stack to handle operations can enhance efficiency, but creating the necessary infrastructure for every chemist is the biggest challenge. To empower pharmacies and distributors with advanced technology, Plazza founders are developing new-age ERPs and leveraging AI to streamline processes. Once these systems are up and running, they can convert prescriptions into carts in 0.4 seconds. 

Each Lifestore is also expected to handle 500-600 orders daily, depending on its size and location, and will also serve walk-in customers. The startup aims to open 15 of these franchise stores in Bengaluru alone.

Additionally, the founders are exploring drone deliveries, although it may take a considerable period to fructify. For years, tech giants like Amazon, Alphabet and Uber promised their laden drones would land at our doorsteps, but they never did due to regulations. However, the delivery of medicines in minutes is a different ball game.

“We are working with a specialised team to overcome regulatory hurdles for specific use cases. For instance, we want to speed up deliveries from warehouses outside Bengaluru to the city or from retail outlets to hospitals in case of emergencies,” said Priyadarshi. “Critical medications for cancer treatment and post-operative recovery require faster deliveries, and drones are the solution.”

Going forward, Plazza plans to diversify its revenue model further by introducing additional healthcare services. Given its push to achieve early-stage growth, the revenue drive will be only too useful if it wants to go beyond deliveries and emerge as an all-encompassing healthcare service provider.   

This brings the founders to a crunch situation – they must raise funding to scale up. “We are in talks with investors,” agreed Priyadarshi. “We still have the capital to set up at least two Lifestores. But additional resources will be required as we expand.”

The funding winter is, hopefully, over, and IPO-bound Zepto’s back-to-back funding rounds at a $5 Bn valuation augur well for the quick commerce sector as a whole. But will there be investor interest in a virtually new category while others have trodden the safe path and taken to medicine delivery as an add-on?

[Edited By Sanghamitra Mandal]

The post Can Plazza Become The Blinkit Of 15-Minute Medicine Delivery In India? appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Avendus said that its Future Leaders Fund III (FLF III) has marked its first close, securing INR 850 Cr in commitments from leading domestic family offices and Indian institutions.

Registered as a category-II Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) with SEBI, FLF III is targeting a raise of INR 1,500 Cr with an additional green shoe option of INR 1,500 Cr.

Launched in May 2024, ‘Future Leaders Fund (FLF) III’ has a total targeted corpus of INR 350 Mn, with a green shoe option of up to INR 1,500 Cr.

The fund plans to make 12-14 investments, with an average ticket size of INR 150–300 Cr, in sectors such as financial services, healthcare, technology, consumer goods, and manufacturing.

The FLF series of funds back high-growth market-leading companies and category-creating businesses.

As per the company statement, FLF III is in the process of finalising its first investment in the healthcare sector, which reflects the fund’s strategy of building a portfolio of consistent compounders and money multipliers. 

The fund follows the success of its predecessors, FLF I and II, whose portfolios include leading companies such as Lenskart, Bikaji, Juspay, SBI General Insurance, and Sagility Technologies. FLF I has returned over 100% of investor capital within four years, while FLF II has recently been fully deployed.

Ritesh Chandra, managing partner, Avendus Future Leaders Fund, commented, “This milestone highlights the significant demand for late-stage private equity as a core component of a balanced alternate portfolio.”

Established in 2019, Avendus Future Leaders Fund partners with other private equity firms and invests in late-stage startups. The FLF platform’s investor base includes Indian and US-based family offices, HNIs, and domestic institutions. 

It claims to have assets worth INR 1,850 Cr under its management on account of investments made from the previous two funds. Its portfolio companies include Lenskart, Delhivery, VerSe Innovation (Dailyhunt), Licious, Juspay, Zeta and FirstCry. 

Prior to this, the company closed two other funds under the platform. The investment firm raised INR 375 Cr as part of its first Future Leaders Fund and followed it by closing the second fund under the platform with INR 1,500 Cr in 2022. 

Meanwhile, in January, Avendus announced the launch of its third private credit fund with a target corpus of up to INR 4,000 Cr. 

At the time, Avendus said that the fund will target sectors such as manufacturing, consumer, chemicals, technology, B2B businesses, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, among others. 

The post Avendus’ Third Future Leaders Fund Raises INR 850 Cr In First Close appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Driven by the country’s technological prowess, digitisation efforts, a supportive regulatory regime, and the launch of the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) in 2016, India’s digital payment ecosystem has grown unhinged.

Launched by erstwhile RBI governor Raghuram G Rajan, UPI was first piloted in Mumbai with 21 member banks. The tech stack was introduced to address the challenges of traditional banking by creating a seamless platform that could allow fund transfers through mobile devices. 

Today, UPI has not only revolutionised traditional payment methods by eliminating the need for extensive details like account numbers or IFSC codes but also made digital payments accessible to all. 

Since its launch, the total volume and value of UPI payments have grown manifold. Notably, UPI transactions surged almost 46% to a record 17,220 Cr in 2024 from 11,768 Cr in 2023. Meanwhile, the total value of UPI transactions zoomed over 35% to INR 246.82 Lakh Cr from INR 182.84 Lakh Cr in 2023.   

Now, what has given a big push to UPI adoption in the country is the rise of fintech apps like PhonePe, Google Pay, Paytm, and CRED. Despite more than 77 mobile apps in the UPI ecosystem, only a few rule this space, with Google Pay and PhonePe holding the top spots. 

In the whole of 2024, Walmart-owned PhonePe dominated the UPI market with over 48% share, while Google Pay held the second spot with a 37% share. Paytm took the third spot, even though its market share plummeted in 2024 to 7.03% from 14.1% a year ago.

One of the biggest reasons for their dominance is the user “stickiness” these apps have created over the years. Now, in this cut-throat segment, a new entrant is aiming to create its own niche.

Founded in 2023 by a former Flipkart employee Bhargav Errangi, POP is a Bengaluru-based fintech startup that is obsessed with outdoing Paytm to take the third port in the UPI-verse.  

However, this is not the interesting part — what’s intriguing is that it plans to accomplish this with its unique UPI-plus-commerce proposition. 

Within just six months, the founder claims to have captured 0.2% of the market share and is on track to target 10% with its distinctive offering.

The startup’s core features include UPI payments, an integrated marketplace, and a credit card that accelerates the earning of POPcoins. 

POP enhances shopping and payments by combining UPI transactions with its unique rewards programme, POPcoins, just like CRED Coins. However, the founder thinks otherwise. (More on this later.)

Users earn POPcoins for every UPI payment made, which can be redeemed for products from top direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands across categories like beauty, electronics, fashion, and home goods.

POP works with over 600 brands, including Portronics, Bombay Shaving Company, Snitch, The Souled Store, Boat, and Yoga Bars, just to name a few.

POP has been approved by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to operate as a third-party application provider (TPAP), enabling UPI payments through its app, POP Club.

The company has raised more than $5 Mn and counts IndiaQuotient as its key investor. 

The startup has partnered with Yes Bank and Juspay to develop its UPI stack.

The Making Of POP

With nearly a decade of experience in ecommerce, Errangi was instrumental in establishing one of India’s earliest social commerce companies, Spoyl. Launched in 2015, Spoyl was a fashion ecommerce platform designed for Gen Z shoppers.

After successfully running Spoyl for over five years, the company was acquired by Flipkart in 2020. Post-acquisition, Errangi joined Flipkart as general manager of Shopsy, where he played a pivotal role in its inception and early growth. Within just four months, he scaled Shopsy to achieve a $1 Bn annualised GMV run rate.

Following his success with Shopsy, Errangi transitioned into a wider role at Flipkart, driving growth across emerging consumer channels. 

As a senior director, he developed and implemented the group’s customer growth strategies, focussing on everything from acquisition to retention. His efforts extended to enhancing the Flipkart Plus loyalty programme, growing Supercoins as a leading loyalty currency, and establishing Flipkart’s re-commerce division.

Although launching another startup wasn’t initially on his radar, Errangi began to notice how ecommerce was evolving. During his time at Flipkart, he closely observed emerging consumer trends and how the industry was preparing for a shift a decade later.

“New-generation commerce was taking shape, and I wanted to create a lifestyle destination that brought customers together around shared interests — whether in commerce, entertainment, or offline events. However, building a B2C company in India before 2023-2024 was still expensive,” he explained.

According to Errangi, while ecommerce in India had matured with robust demand, logistics, and infrastructure, a significant gap was building a loyal customer network.

Motivated by this, Errangi began conceptualising POP in mid-2022, leaving Flipkart alongside a few colleagues to pursue his vision. By early 2023, POP’s first product, POPcoins, was launched.

So, How Did UPI Became The Core Of POP’s Proposition? 

Soon after the founder started working on his initial idea, he realised that building the customer cross-category network was more of a thesis. 

“Building a network means reaching millions of customers, and you can’t just spend money on Meta ads back in 2014 or 2015. So, we thought we should build this network creatively,” the founder said. The question that got him was how to engage customers daily. 

He was sure that ecommerce isn’t a daily activity, but quick commerce is.

“To build a strong, scalable customer network with repeat engagement, we needed a daily activity that would drive them to open the app. That’s when we realised UPI could be that large phenomenon, as it is fast, efficient and secure,” the founder of the fintech startup said.

Interestingly, another reason the founder became more confident in entering this space was that while existing apps like PhonePe and CRED were fast and secure, these were either dealing with revenue challenges or customer retention issues.  

This gave him the idea to shift to a payments-to-commerce approach, where the entry point to the platform would be UPI.

According to the founder, the core customer value proposition of POP is centred around rewarding UPI transactions. 

The plan was to create a ring-fenced D2C brand network alongside the marketplace, all tied together with a shopping currency called POPcoins. 

When users use the POP UPI instead of other payment apps like CRED, Paytm, or Google Pay, they earn 2% POPcoins on every transaction. These coins can be redeemed at hundreds of partner merchants, offering users the freedom to choose where to redeem them — unlike the voucher code model used by competitors.

To make this a reality, the startup obtained a UPI licence (TPAP), which took a few months. Following that, the development of tech took over six months, and after being audited by NPCI and RBI, POP became operational.

POP operates on a unique payments-to-commerce model that integrates payments with a curated D2C network. The platform is built on UPI, offering a high-velocity product that rewards users for every UPI transaction made on the app.

Currently, there are over 600+ brands and 1 Lakh+ SKUs available on the POP app. These brands come from a range of new-age companies, such as Mamaearth, Mcaffeine, Souledstore, and FixMyCurls. 

When users make purchases, they can redeem POPcoins for discounts. For example, if a product is priced at INR 500, it can be purchased for INR 400 plus 100 POPcoins, ensuring that the startup offers the lowest market price.

POP’s revenue model is built around three key channels. First is the commerce revenue model, where POP earns a commission (usually around 20%) on products sold through its platform. Second, the platform earns from credit card transactions through the Merchant Discount Rate (MDR). 

For every INR 20,000 spent on POP’s credit card, the platform generates around INR 150 in revenue. Once a credit card is activated, it creates a consistent, recurring revenue stream for POP. Additionally, POP charges a one-time activation fee of INR 1,000 per card. Another revenue stream is transactional fees from credit card usage, which generate ongoing revenue with every purchase made using the card. 

But, Is There A Need For Another CRED?

While POP’s business model may seem similar to CRED’s, the founder emphasises that POP is not trying to replicate CRED or any other existing players. POP is different from CRED in several key ways.

“One major difference is that POPcoins are closer to real currency, with a fixed value of INR 1. These coins can be redeemed across all selections on the platform and within the network. On the other hand, CRED coins are primarily used for non-commerce engagement, such as playing games or unlocking offers, and they do not have a fixed value.”

Furthermore, while CRED operates across multiple sectors like insurance, loans, and payments, with ecommerce being one aspect, POP is solely focussed on the payments-to-commerce conversion. The founder’s vision for POP is to carve out its own unique niche and capture 10% of the market share.

“While Google Pay and PhonePe dominate the top spots, there’s still room for new players. Paytm, for example, holds just 10% of the market share, and we’ve already captured 0.2%. Our goal is to grow steadily by introducing more products, features, and engagement tools. By mid-2025, we aim to be among the top 10 players in the UPI space,” the founder said.

Further speaking about the differentiation, the founder said that POP differentiate itself by the rewards it offers. Unlike cashback-driven apps, it focusses on creating a stickier reward proposition centred around new-age commerce and the consumption habits of the modern consumer. Besides, it is targeting a young audience. 

What’s Next For POP?

In terms of revenue, while the startup is new, it is currently processing 2.1 Lakh UPI transactions per day. It recorded a total of 6.4 Mn UPI transactions in December 2024. The startup is currently processing close to 10 Mn UPI transactions per month and is already among the top 25 apps in the UPI space. By next month, its goal is to break into the top 20.

The platform is also handling 1,500 ecommerce orders daily, contributing to an annualised GMV of INR 30 Cr on its ecommerce platform. Additionally, it is issuing approximately 4,000 credit cards per month.

In the short term, POP aims to reach 100 Mn transactions per month. Additionally, the company is targeting to onboard 1 Lakh active POP credit card users within the next four months.

It aims to focus on expanding its brand network and introducing more credit products, including a secured credit card. Along with this, the startup plans to grow its merchant network, both online and offline, with the intention to partner with large enterprise brands like food delivery services and event platforms.

“This expansion will allow customers to redeem POPcoins across a wider range of merchants, making the POPcoin ecosystem more robust and accessible,” the founder said.

While many things might have worked in favour of the founder so far, the biggest challenge that the founder has been facing is convincing consumers to switch from apps like PhonePe and Google Pay to POP and make it their primary UPI app. 

“Since money is involved, building trust is crucial. The startup is overcoming this by offering more value than existing players,” he added.

Although still in its early stages, it will be interesting to see how POP competes for a top spot in the UPI market, which is currently led by PhonePe and Google Pay.

[Edited By Shishir Parasher]

The post Can POP’s UPI+Commerce Playbook Dim CRED & Paytm’s Dominance In The UPI-verse? appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Mumbai-based electric vehicle startup BGauss has reportedly secured a funding of INR 161 Cr (around $18.6 Mn) from Bharat Value Fund (BVF) in a mix of primary and secondary transactions.

As per an ET report, the funding will be used to strengthen the Pune-based company’s footprint in both domestic and international markets.

It also plans to allocate the funds towards capital expenditure, marketing efforts, and enhancing in-house research and development (R&D) for upcoming product launches.

“This funding will accelerate our mission to be among the top five EV two-wheeler players and bring cutting-edge, reliable electric scooters to the market,” Hemant Kabra, founder and managing director of BGauss told ET.

Inc42 has reached out to the company, and the story will be updated upon receiving a response.

In 2022, BGauss announced its first-ever funding of $7 Mn, led by Darshan Patel, the founder of Vini Cosmetics. This marked the company’s maiden fundraise since entering India’s two-wheeler EV market in October 2020.

Founded in 2020 by Kabra, BGauss has a range of dynamic, stylish, premium-yet affordable electric scooters. All its components such as motor, battery, vehicle control units, among others have been developed in-house by BGauss considering long-term business interests, safety and consumer requirements.

According to ET, BGauss is planning to launch two new products this year. 

In June 2024, the company unveiled its latest scooter, the RUV 350, equipped with a 3.5-kilowatt electric motor, a peak torque of 165 newton-metres (Nm), and a top speed of 75 kilometres per hour (kmph).

BGauss serves over 45,000 customers and plans to expand its dealership network from 120 to 500, targeting over 1,000 touchpoints across India. Its manufacturing capacity of 100,000 units annually will scale with growing demand.

The company reported a revenue of INR 178.4 Cr and a net loss of INR 49.6 Cr in FY24, according to Tracxn, and aims to achieve around INR 250 Cr in revenue this financial year.

This development comes at a time when India’s EV market witnessed significant activity in 2024, with launches like Ola’s Roadster, Honda’s Activa EV, Mahindra’s BE 6, Tata’s Curvv EV, and MG’s Windsor, featuring innovations such as ultra-fast charging and AI-assisted driving. While EV adoption slowed compared to 2023, over two million EVs were sold across categories, supported by schemes like EMPS (INR 770 Cr) and PM E-DRIVE (INR 10,900 Cr), aiming to enable the sale of 2.88 Mn vehicles in two years.

The post EV Startup BGauss Bags INR 161 Cr From Bharat Value Fund appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has approved the merger of Mumbai-based Kiranakart Technologies, which operates the quick commerce platform Zepto, with its Singapore-based affiliate, Kiranakart Pte Ltd. 

Following the NCLT order, Zepto becomes an Indian company with no opposition to the cross-border amalgamation of the two entities.

Kiranakart Technologies Private Limited is the Indian entity operating Zepto, while its Singaporean holding company is Kiranakart PTE LTD.

Zepto will not require a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), per the NCLT order. The tribunal noted that the RBI has not raised any objections, and since the Scheme of Arrangement falls under Regulation 9 of the Cross Border Merger Regulations, which provides for deemed prior approval from the RBI, an explicit NOC is not necessary.

The order stated, “The Scheme shall also enable the Companies to address the competitive regulatory environment, risks and policies, better management, value consolidation and creation of shareholder’s value.”

With the flip of its holding company to Mumbai, India, Zepto aims to streamline its group structure by reducing the number of legal entities to “optimise the legal entity structure” for enhanced business synergies, quicker decision-making, and significant cost savings. 

The NCLT Mumbai bench noted that this simplified structure would support future fundraising efforts from Indian and global investors.

The order further added that the flip to India will enable Zepto to directly align with the regulatory environment, manage risks, and adhere to local policies. This move also aims to streamline operations by eliminating redundant administrative functions and multiple record-keeping processes, significantly reducing administrative, managerial, and other common expenses.

This development is expected to expedite Zepto’s plans for an initial public offering (IPO) in India later this year.

Zepto’s domicile flip to India is expected to be formally completed within 30 days.

Earlier, Inc42 reported that Nexus-backed Zepto, is planning to reverse flip to India. Sources close to the company revealed that Zepto aims to join the ranks of Eruditus, Razorpay, Pine Labs, and Groww in the reverse flipping queue. However, similar to PhonePe’s situation, where tax liabilities reached up to $900 Mn, many of these unicorns are taking a cautious approach and strategising the most efficient reverse flipping structure.

“The scheme appears to be fair and reasonable and (it) is not in violation of any provisions of law and is not contrary to public policy,” the Mumbai bench of NCLT observed in its January 9 order.

The merger has also received approval from Singaporean authorities.

The quick commerce platform is looking to file its initial public offering (IPO) draft papers in March or April this year.

The company has already obtained the necessary permissions to relocate its base from Singapore to India ahead of the public listing.

Founded in 2021 by Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, Zepto currently operates under a B2B model. Its parent, Kiranakart Technologies, procures goods directly from brands and sells them exclusively to its licensee companies, including the likes of Geddit Convenience, Drogheria Sellers and Commodum Groceries.

Zepto grabbed headlines last year after raising a whopping $1.3 Bn in funding and outpacing Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart in terms of revenue.

The quick commerce unicorn is currently valued at close to $1.4 Bn.

The post Zepto Gets NCLT Nod For Reverse Flip To India: Report appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based Boba Bhai, a quick-service restaurant (QSR) brand specialising in bubble tea and other food items, has secured INR 30 Cr (around $3.4 Mn) in a Series A funding round led by 8i Ventures. 

The round also saw participation from a host of existing investors, including Titan Capital Winners Fund, Global Growth Capital and DEVC among others.

The startup plans to deploy the fresh proceeds to expand into newer cities such as Pune and Ahmedabad, scale operations, roll out new Korean offerings and develop new sub-brands.

The latest round took the startup’s total funding to INR 42.5 Cr ($4.9 Mn) till date.

Founded in 2023 by Dhruv Kohli, Boba Bhai sells bubble tea in 45 flavours and K-Pop burgers with an Indian twist. 

In April last year, Boba Bhai raised INR 12.5 Cr from Titan Capital and Global Growth Capital UK, along with participation from other investors, including V3 Ventures cofounder Arjun Vaidya, Marsshot VC (RazorPay founders’ fund), DEVC, Warm Up Ventures, Mamaearth cofounder Varun Alagh and PeerCheque among others.

Currently, the brand has a presence in nine cities, including Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Mangalore, Udaipur and Chennai and aims to double its presence. 

As per Kohli, the startup is looking to open over 150 stores by the end of this year.

Kohli claimed that the startup has achieved revenues of INR 8 Cr within its first six months of operations. 

Speaking on the funding, Kohli said, “Over the past nine months, we’ve witnessed incredible growth, driven by our commitment to innovation, quality, and customer satisfaction. With the strategic backing of our investors, we are well-positioned to scale our operations, introduce exciting new offerings, and establish Boba Bhai as the go-to QSR brand for the next generation of Indian consumers.”

Boba Bhai processes over 85,000 monthly orders and operates 42 outlets across nine cities. The startup boasts an average order value of over INR 400 and a repeat customer rate of 48%.

Per the founder, he aims to capture 75-80% of India’s bubble tea market share.  

The post Bubble Tea Brand Boba Bhai Nets INR 30 Cr To Roll Out New Korean Offerings, Expansion appeared first on Inc42 Media.

AceVector Limited has bolstered its leadership team with two new appointments. While Achint Setia will be leading Snapdeal as its chief executive officer, Himanshu Chakrawarti will transition to the role of chief executive officer of Stellaro Brands.

Chakrawarti, who has led Snapdeal and Stellaro Brands (a subsidiary of Acevector Limited) for the past three years, will now focus on driving its growth.

With more than 30 years of experience in retail and brand building, he had worked with companies like Trent, Arvind and Landmark Group.

On the other hand, Setia brings nearly 20 years of diverse experience in building new businesses, marketing, strategy, M&A, and technology, spanning e-commerce, media, telecom and government services to the table. 

He joined the company from Zalora Group (Singapore), where he served as the chief revenue and marketing officer. In his previous roles, Setia has held leadership roles at Myntra, Viacom18, McKinsey & Co, and Microsoft. 

“Under Chakrawarti’s leadership, we have seen remarkable progress across Snapdeal and Stellaro Brands, and this transition allows the group to benefit from his experiences by focusing on Stellaro’s growth. Seta’s extensive experience in ecommerce, media, technology, and brand building will add great value to his role as the CEO of Snapdeal and will be instrumental in supporting the business on its growth trajectory,” cofounders of AceVector said in a joint statement.

Founded in 2010 by Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, Snapdeal has raised over $1.5 Bn till date from investors such as Masayoshi Son-led SoftBank, Foxconn Technology Group, Alibaba Group, and Canada’s Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan.

The startup earns majority of its revenue from ancillary activities, which includes providing services for collection, fulfilment centre, packaging facilitation, courier facilitation, RTO/RPR fees, closing fees and freight charges. Apart from this, it also earns revenue by providing warehousing software solutions to the merchant.  

In 2022, Snapdeal and its subsidiaries, including Unicommerce and Stellaro Brands, were consolidated under the group brand AceVector. The group was established to unite innovation in distribution channels, digital-first consumer brands, and SaaS platforms. Stellaro is a house of brands under the AceVector Group, dedicated to offering high-quality, contemporary styling at value-driven prices for the discerning online shopper in India.

On the financial side, Snapdeal’s parent entity AceVector saw its consolidated operating revenue decline 31% to INR 372 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) from INR 539.6 Cr reported in the prior fiscal year.

However, it managed to lower its loss despite the decrease in sales revenue. Snapdeal’s net loss narrowed 44.7% to INR 282.2 Cr in FY23 from INR 510.3 Cr in the prior year.

The post Achint Setia Named As Snapdeal CEO appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Centre is reportedly looking to further refine the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Rules as a part of its effort to save children from harms in the digital space while fostering their engagement with technology.

As per a PTI report, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the rules will evolve based on the learning from their implementation.

“We will refine it (DPDP Rules) further to take the power of technology to children while saving them from many harm,” he said.

The government released the draft DPDP Rules 2025 on January 3, and they are open for public consultation until February 18, 2024.

The DPDP Act classifies users under 18 as children and mandates social media or internet intermediaries, known as data fiduciaries, to obtain explicit parental consent before processing any data from children.

The draft rules mandate that digital platforms can process a child’s data only with consent from a verifiable parent or guardian. Verification can be done using voluntarily provided identity and age details or through a virtual token issued by a legally authorised entity.

Vaishnaw mentioned that the token system had been successful in various instances, such as Aadhaar-based transaction verifications. He explained that the tokens would be temporary and valid for a single transaction, after which they would be automatically destroyed. The minister also stated that sector-specific guidelines could be issued if necessary, but only after consulting with relevant sectoral experts and stakeholders.

Vaishnaw said virtual token verification would not risk individual privacy. He confirmed that the DPDP Act would not affect whistleblowers, as they are protected by law. He also mentioned that there is no limit on filing complaints under the DPDP Act.

Last year, it was reported that social media platforms are exploring methods like QR codes, virtual Aadhaar IDs, or age verification at the app store level to comply with the DPDP Act of 2023. However, this provision encountered pushback from industry executives who were concerned about the privacy implications associated with these tools for establishing children’s ages and verifying parental connections.

The post DPDP Rules Will Be Refined Further To Save Children From Harms In Digital Space: Vaishnaw appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Silicon Valley-based early-stage venture fund South Park Commons (SPC) is planning a capital raise for its India-focused fund over six months after it entered the South Asian market, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

While the exact size of the fund has not been finalised, the listing sets the target at $40 Mn.

TechCrunch reported the development first.

Founded in 2015 by Ruchi Sanghvi, the first female engineer at Facebook and former VP of Operations at Dropbox, SPC is a tech startup community and early-stage venture fund dedicated to supporting founders, technologists, researchers, and builders during the -1 to 0 stage of their career, when their goal is to figure out what to work on next.

Sanghvi was joined by Aditya Agarwal, former CTO of Dropbox, with the founding of the SPC Fund in 2018. SPC has a presence in San Francisco and New York City.

SPC made its entry into the Indian market last year by establishing its first international outpost in Bengaluru. This initiative, launched in partnership with Flipkart cofounder Binny Bansal, aimed to foster a supportive ecosystem for founders, technologists, and researchers.

SPC has launched two funds till date and counts Indian unicorns like Cure.Fit and Meesho in its portfolio. The move to Bengaluru represents SPC’s first global expansion.

The SPC’s entry into India comes at the heart of growing Investor interest in the Indian tech startup landscape driven by the surge in smartphone adoption and affordable internet prices in recent times. 

SPC has approximately 175 active members and over 800 alumni. Of these, about 80% are founders, while the remaining members are domain experts and researchers.

In September last year, Prateek Mehta, a former executive at stockbroking firm Angel One and ecommerce giant Myntra, joined SPC as its founding partner for India.

The post South Park Commons Looking To Raise $40 Mn For India-Focused Fund appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based energy tech startup EMO Energy has raised $6.2 Mn (INR 53.1 Cr) in its Series A funding round led by Subhkam Ventures, along with participation from existing investor Transition VC. 

The startup plans to deploy the fresh proceeds to expand its energy solutions for two and three-wheelers to over 1 Lakh vehicles over the next two years and aims to deploy 1 GWh of energy storage. 

The investment will also support boosting its R&D capabilities for proprietary battery health extension software and expanding its team to meet increasing operational demands. Apart from these, the capital will be used to further scale up the company’s advanced battery software and hardware solutions for mobility and energy storage.

Founded in 2022 by Sheetanshu Tyagi and Rahul Patel, EMO Energy is a deep energy-tech startup focused on enabling EV adoption and urban decarbonisation. The company aims to contribute to the country’s EV growth with its 30-minute portable battery packs and a full-stack technology offering, all built in-house.

“Our focus is to create an integrated urban energy solution by deploying batteries and chargers in energy storage and light mobility. Over the last 12 months, EMO has forged critical high-volume partnerships across major OEM’s, and with the latest infusion of capital, we are now well-equipped to scale from 2 to 2000 kWh,” Tyagi said.

He said that EMO is building an ecosystem where dark stores and commercial establishments will operate EMO-enabled delivery vehicles, powered by EMO fast chargers and energy storage systems, all managed through integrated energy management software. 

He added that the funding will help accelerate their mission to reshape the future of urban India and expand their impact on sustainable solutions for clean energy.

The startup claims to have deployed over 2,000 battery packs in the mobility segment and is conducting production-ready pilots for energy storage systems (ESS) to provide peak shaving/backup and replace diesel generators in industrial and commercial settings. Some of its clients include Kinetic Green, BigBasket, Domino’s and Blinkit.

The startup has so far raised $7.4 Mn and counts Transition VC, Gruhas, as key investors.

The post EMO Energy Bags $6.2 Mn To Expand Energy Solutions For Two And Three-Wheelers appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Telecom operators Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea have reportedly signed a share purchase agreement with iBus Network and Infrastructure Pvt to transfer their entire stake in joint venture Firefly Networks Ltd. 

Both the telecom companies currently hold a 50% stake in Firefly Networks, which will be sold to iBus Network for a total cash consideration of INR 4.5 Cr each, as per exchange filings.

The deal is anticipated to close within 30 business days from the execution date of the agreement between the parties. Upon completion, Firefly Networks will cease to be a joint venture of Bharti Airtel and Vodafone Idea.

According to the filing, the transaction is not classified as a related-party transaction and remains subject to the fulfillment of closing conditions.

“The Company will receive INR 4.5 Cr for the sale of its entire stake (50%) held in Firefly,” Vodafone Idea said in a separate filing.

Firefly manages and monetises Wi-Fi hotspots, providing Wi-Fi infrastructure to partners such as educational institutions, hospitals, malls, cafes, public spaces, transit hubs, and corporate parks across major Indian cities.

Supported by investors such as the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund and the International Finance Corporation, iBus Network and Infrastructure focuses on delivering in-building telecom network solutions and Wi-Fi managed services.

Founded in 2013 by Ram Sellaratnam, Subash Vasudevan and Sunil Menon, iBUS builds digital infrastructure solutions and deploys cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity at IT parks, airports, hospitals, among others.

Its product portfolio includes iBus Talk (data connectivity inside buildings), iBus Find (consumer behaviour analyser), iBus Sync (broadband services) and iBus Sense (IoT-enabled communication platform).

Months ago, the startup raised INR 280 Cr (approximately $34 Mn) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, to expand its presence in international markets.

The post Telecom Giants Bharti Airtel, Vodafone To Transfer Entire Stake In JV To iBus appeared first on Inc42 Media.

D2C dinnerware brand BlackCarrot has raised an undisclosed amount in its seed funding round led by We Founder Circle, along with participation from EvolveX accelerator and PlaySimple Games’ cofounder Suraj Nalin.

BlackCarrot’s cofounder Yadupati Gupta told Inc42 that the company has closed the initial tranche of the seed funding and the remaining round is expected to be closed over the next three months.

Yadupati added that the startup is in discussions with other funds to finalise the balance.

BlackCarrot plans to use the fresh capital for product development and expanding its presence across various marketplaces. 

Currently, the startup is live on all major ecommerce platforms, including Tata CliQ Luxury, Myntra, Amazon and Ajio. 

Founded in 2024 by father-son duo Yadupati and Vishal Gupta, BlackCarrot is a Government-recognised startup that offers dinnerware products such as stoneware, glassware, and stainless-steel cutlery. The brand currently has over 90 SKUs.

The startup claims to offer healthier alternatives to traditional options available in the market. Its portfolio includes Bone China-free crockery, 304 food-grade stainless steel cutlery, and lead-free glasses.

The startup competes with the likes of Nestasia and Pepperfry as well legacy brands such as Borosil and IKEA.

In addition to its online presence, the brand has ventured into offline retail, making its debut in Nature’s Basket stores.

“This investment will fuel our growth across all channels, including our website, marketplaces, and quick commerce platforms,” the cofounders said in a joint statement.

The investment follows bollywood actress Neha Dhupia and Agnello Dias, cofounder of Taproot Dentsu acquiring an equity stake in the D2C startup. 

In addition to her investment, Dhupia has been onboarded as the brand ambassador and will help promote the startup. This move follows the earlier entry of Agnello Dias, cofunder of Taproot Dentsu, as an equity partner. The startup has not disclosed the exact stake Dhupia acquired.

Going forward, the founder aims to launch over 100 SKUs within the next 60 days and establish a presence in major offline retail chains across India.

The post D2C Dinnerware Startup BlackCarrot Bags Funding Led By We Founder Circle appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini has said the government is committed to establish the state as a startup hub.

In a meeting with startup entrepreneurs, Saini said, “the government is making concerted efforts to position Haryana as a key player in the national startup ecosystem, in line with the goals of the Make in India and Startup India initiatives.”

As per PTI’s report, quoting the CM, “the initiative is designed to boost economic growth and generate employment opportunities for the youth, positioning Haryana as a distinguished hub of innovation and entrepreneurship in the country.”

He further added that the number of startups in Haryana should triple. 

“Today, Haryana is the most preferred state for startup incubators, investors, and various stakeholders in the startup ecosystem in the country. The non-stop government of the state has no shortage of funds. With new innovations, the promising youth of the state will move forward and bring glory to the state,” Saini said in an X post.

The CM added that the state government is planning new schemes to promote startups in the upcoming 2025-26 budget. “These initiatives will be designed to offer the youth guidance and access to funding, enabling them to establish their own businesses.”

For the 2025-26 state budget, the Haryana government is actively seeking suggestions from citizens, industrialists, and other stakeholders through consultation meetings to ensure the budget promotes inclusive development and benefits every section of society. 

Saini also invited startup entrepreneurs to share their ideas, assuring them that their inputs would be considered in the budget. “Based on these suggestions, new schemes will be devised to boost the number of startups in the state,” he said.

He added that in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision of transforming India into a developed nation by 2047, the government’s priority is to position Haryana as a developed state. 

The state government is already providing various incentives through policies aimed at fostering industrial growth and development, Saini noted. 

The Haryana CM also highlighted that startups hold significant potential to boost the growth of traditional industries.

In recent years, the Indian startup ecosystem has expanded beyond traditional business hubs like Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, and Mumbai, with tier II and III cities emerging as new hotbeds for entrepreneurship and innovation.

According to Inc42’s Annual Funding Report 2024, Hyderabad, Pune and Chennai emerged as frontrunners in the growing startup hub race. While Hyderabad claimed the top spot on the back of the total number of deals secured since 2014 (at 384+), Pune and Chennai secured second and third places, with 382+ and 379+ deals, respectively. Interestingly, with $4.7 Bn+ each, Pune and Chennai outranked Hyderabad in terms of total funding, which has been able to net $3 Bn+ since 2014.

Some of the other top emerging startup hubs identified in the Inc42’s latest report included Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Kolkata, Indore, Kochi, Chandigarh and Vadodara. Overall, the top 10 emerging startup hubs have secured a total funding north of $15.5 Bn in more than 1,570 deals since 2014.

The post CM Saini Aims To Establish Haryana As Startup Hub appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Over the past decade, the Indian ecommerce sector has experienced remarkable growth on the back of ever-increasing internet penetration, adoption of digital payments, changing consumer behaviour, growing smartphone usage, and the expansion of digital infrastructure. 

Given the current scheme of things, the Indian ecommerce market is expected to breach the $400 Bn mark by 2030, and a brigade of more than 500 Mn online shoppers is expected to drive this growth.

Despite the promising outlook, Inc42’s Indian Tech Startup Funding Report 2024 has revealed that the sector had to endure a 42% year-on-year (YoY) decline in funding in the just-concluded year. Notably, ecommerce startups raised a total of $1.5 Bn, down from the $2.6 Bn secured in 2023.

Interestingly, despite the shrink in the overall funding quantum, ecommerce emerged as the leading sector in terms of the number of deals bagged. For context, ecommerce startups lapped up 203 deals during the year compared to enterprise tech and fintech sectors, which had to make do with 167 and 162 deals, respectively, during the year. The Indian ecommerce sector netted 191 in 2023.

Ecommerce also emerged as one of the most funded sectors at the seed stage. Startups in the space raised $127 Mn during the year. This sum accounted for 14.2% of the total $893 Mn raised by early-stage ventures in the entirety of 2024. 

Late-stage ecommerce startups secured $7 Bn in funding. Some of the biggest ecommerce deals of the year included Kushal’s, Captain Fresh, The Ayurveda Experience, and Curefoods. In the first half of 2024, Kushal’s raised $34 Mn, The Ayurveda Experience secured $27 Mn, Curefoods raised $25 Mn and Captain Fresh raised $20 Mn.

Now, let’s take a look at some of the key ecommerce funding trends observed in 2024:

• Overall, ecommerce startups raised $1.5 Bn+ in 2024, registering a 42% year-over-year decline in funding.
• Despite the decline in total funding, the deal count witnessed a 6% minor uptick in 2024.
• The median ticket size for ecommerce startup investments in 2024 was $1.8 Mn, down 10% from $2 Mn in 2023.
• Mega deal count decreased from 4 in 2023 to 3 in 2024.
• D2C startups secured $840 Mn, accounting for 54.9% of total ecommerce funding.
• B2C ecommerce startups raised $492 Mn, while B2B ecommerce raised $127 Mn out of the total funding.
• M&A activity in the space dropped significantly from 25 deals in 2023 to 6 deals in 2024.
• Ecommerce and fintech sectors emerged as the most funded for women-led startups in 2024.

D2C Shone The Brightest In The Ecommerce Realm

India’s D2C market has experienced exponential growth in the last few years and is expected to reach $100 Bn by 2025. Several factors have fuelled the rise of D2C brands. 

With over 190 Mn digital shoppers, India is the world’s third-largest online shopping market, providing a prime opportunity for D2C brands to tap into the growing demand for innovation and the shift away from traditional players. The fashion and clothing sector holds the highest growth potential, expected to reach $43.2 Bn by 2025.

Emerging D2C brands like Mamaearth, CaratLane, Minimalist, Hyphen, and Nua have achieved remarkable success, reaching the INR 100 Cr revenue mark in a short span.

Interestingly, due to its potential, D2C remained the most funded subsector of ecommerce in 2024, accounting for the highest share of deals. This reflects strong investor interest in brands that sell directly to consumers, bypassing traditional retail channels.

“I remain very bullish on the D2C sector and anticipate significant action across multiple categories, including home, appliances, beauty, food, and wellness. More D2C brands will emerge, disrupting legacy players. The sector will continue to attract funding across various stages and milestones. Quick commerce will continue to create new opportunities in 2025 and beyond,” said Anurag Kedia, founder of Pilgrim.

Of the total $1.5 Bn raised in ecommerce funding, D2C startups raised $840 Mn, which accounted for 54.9% of the total funding. These startups secured funding through 162 deals, making up 79% of the total deal count in the sector.

Overall, homegrown startups cumulatively netted more than $12 Bn in fresh funds during the year, up over 20% from the $10 Bn raised in 2023. The year saw as many as 993 deals materialise, about 11% more than 2023.

[Edited By Shishir Parasher]

The post Indian Ecommerce Funding Drops 42% YoY To $1.5 Bn appeared first on Inc42 Media.

IPO-bound logistics startup Ecom Express has roped in Kammal Daas as vice president of operations, Last Mile. 

In his new role, Daas will focus on enhancing the company’s operational capabilities and driving efficiency in its last-mile delivery processes.

He will oversee Ecom Express’s last-mile delivery operations, focusing on enhancing customer experience and operational excellence.

His responsibilities will include optimising delivery strategies to enhance efficiency and reliability. 

Daas will focus on leveraging advanced technologies for real-time tracking and seamless operations while fostering a high-performance culture by mentoring and empowering his team. Ensuring safety and maintaining compliance across all operations will remain a key priority.

Daas brings over 18 years of extensive experience in operations, logistics, and supply chain management. Prior to joining Ecom Express, he served as vice president of operations at Licious, where he oversaw mid-mile delivery operations and managed procurement logistics.

His career highlights also include leadership positions at Flipkart and Walmart India, where he developed third-party logistics and enhanced supply chain capabilities.

Daas said, “With the company’s commitment to innovation and customer-centricity, I look forward to contributing to its growth and operational excellence. Together, we will strive to deliver unparalleled value to our customers and partners.”

Daas holds an advanced degree in supply chain and digital supply chain from the Indian School of business and a postgraduate degree in business management. In his new role, he will focus on ensuring delivery timelines and seamless team coordination to meet organisational objective.

Founded in 2012 by the late TA Krishnan, Manju Dhawan, K Satyanarayana and Sanjeev Saxena, Ecom Express is a pure play B2C ecommerce logistics solutions provider. It generates revenue by servicing customers in the ecommerce industry, including horizontal, vertical, D2C, and quick commerce platforms in India.

The startup reduced its consolidated net loss by 67% YoY to INR 255.8 Cr in FY24, down from INR 428.1 Cr in FY23. Loss from continuing operations stood at INR 248.5 Cr, compared to INR 359.8 Cr in the previous year, while loss from discontinued operations decreased to INR 7.4 Cr from INR 68.3 Cr in FY23.

The startup is also preparing for an IPO. In November, Ecom Express received observations from SEBI, which, in regulatory terms, signals a green light for proceeding with the public offering.

Ecom Express filed its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) in August for INR 2,600 Cr IPO. This includes a fresh issue of equity shares up to INR 1,284.5 Cr and an offer for sale (OFS) worth INR 1,315.5 Cr.

This is the logistics startup’s second attempt at a public listing. In 2022, the company planned an INR 4,860 Cr IPO but postponed it later due to bearish market conditions.

Ecom Express competes with the likes of Delhivery, Bluedart, Xpressbees and Shadowfax. 

The post Ecom Express Appoints Kammal Daas As VP Of Last Mile Operations appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Education OTT platform Klassroom Edutech has secured an undisclosed amount in a Pre-Series A funding round led by ah! Ventures, along with participation from LetsVenture, Hem Securities, Meteor Ventures and Growth Sense Fund.

Klassroom will use the funding to accelerate growth by advancing AI-driven technology, improving content creation and expanding strategically into new geographic regions.

The startup plans to expand its reach into southern states like Karnataka, Telangana, and Andhra Pradesh, as well as into the northeastern states. It is also targeting key international markets such as the US, UAE, and Singapore.

Currently, the company has established a strong presence across Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Gujarat, and Delhi.

The startup has raised over $1.5 Mn across various funding rounds so far. It counts the likes of Suniel Shetty, ah! Ventures Angel Fund, Hem Angels, Pavan Bakeri (managing director, Bakeri Group), Kishore Ganji (founder, Astir Ventures), and others under its investors.

Bollywood actor and entrepreneur Shetty, who invested in Klassroom in 2023, is supporting the Mumbai-based edtech’s social initiatives through the Suniel Shetty Scholarship Scheme.

Amit D Kumar, senior partner at ah! Ventures, said, “Education is a sector we have also believed and backed and I am sure there are more exciting milestones which Klassroom is on its way to achieve”.

Pranav Mahajani, from LetsVenture, added, “Klassroom’s innovative hybrid model, combining their Education OTT platform with offline learning centres, addresses critical challenges of accessibility, affordability, and accountability in education. We believe Klassroom is poised to redefine the future of learning in India and beyond.”

Founded in 2016, Mumbai-based Klassroom Edutech is an edtech startup building a hybrid education experience. The founders, mother-and-sons trio of Alka, Dhruv and Dhumil Javeri, are working to support rural and urban students with affordable, accessible, accountable and flexible education.

The startup aims to revolutionise education with its AI-driven Education OTT platform and claims to have a network of over 200 offline learning centres, serving more than 500,000 students across 600 cities. In addition to K-12, Klassroom also offers a test prep vertical for exams like IIT-JEE, CA, and CS, among others.

Since its launch, Klassroom’s OTT app has gained over 50,000 subscribers in its first year, reflecting its rapid adoption.

The app provides a comprehensive learning ecosystem, featuring content that spans academics, skill-based training for industry jobs, career courses, language learning, and more.

The platform is aligned with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and offers students a wide range of learning experiences.

Alka Javeri, cofounder of Klassroom Edutech, said, “By combining technology and content aligned with NEP 2020, we are empowering students with holistic learning experiences.”

The company claims to have delivered 7X wealth growth to its investors in just three years and projects 3X year-on-year growth, with revenues consistently increasing. Klassroom is already profitable, a notable achievement in the sector.

Dhumil Javeri, cofounder of the startup told Inc42 that the startup is 35% EBITDA profitable and 20% PAT profitable.

Meanwhile, the startup is also planning to launch an SME IPO soon, according to the founder. While the cofounder did not share specific details, he mentioned that the IPO plans are set to unfold soon.

In addition, the Mumbai-based startup has recently signed an MOU with the Government of Rajasthan to provide skill development courses to 300,000 students across 3,000 schools.

According to Inc42’s ‘Indian Tech Startup Funding Report 2024’, startups raised over $12 Bn in funding this year, marking a 20% increase from the $10 Bn raised in the previous year.

Edtech startups raised over $568 Mn in 2024, a significant increase compared to last year, although the deal count dropped by 38%. Despite this, there has been a noticeable resurgence of investor interest in sectors like edtech.

While the edtech sector is expected to face challenges ahead, with funding projected to decline by 33% to $400 Mn, new opportunities are emerging in areas like AI-driven tutoring and gamified education platforms.

The post Exclusive: Suniel Shetty-Backed Klassroom Edutech Raises Funding To Expand Its AI Play appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions reached a new high in December with 16.73 Bn transactions, marking an 8.08% increase from 15.48 Bn in the preceding month.

This also breached October’s 16.58 Bn transactions, which grew by 10% month-on-month (MoM).

In December, transactions saw a 0.9% increase from October’s 16.58 Bn.

According to National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) data, UPI transactions in December reached INR 23.25 Lakh Cr, a growth of 7.9% from INR 21.55 Lakh Cr in November.

Year-on-year (YoY), the volume of UPI transactions saw a significant increase of 39%.

The average daily transaction count rose to 540 Mn in December, up from 516 Mn in November.

This growth aligns with RBI governor Shaktikanta Das projecting that UPI transactions will soon hit the 1 Bn mark per day, up from the current 500 Mn.

In terms of UPI market share, fintech giants PhonePe and Google Pay continue to dominate the ecosystem, holding 48.4% and 37.3% market shares, respectively, as of August.

Besides, the government is actively promoting UPI on a global scale. In July, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced plans to integrate UPI with Malaysia’s national payments network, PayNet. Moreover, countries such as Sri Lanka, Mauritius, Bhutan, Nepal, the UAE, and Canada have already adopted India’s UPI payment model to varying degrees.

This comes months after the Reserve Bank of India increased the cap on transactions processed on UPI 123Pay to INR 10,000 from INR 5,000 earlier. Similarly, the per transaction limit for UPI Lite has also been raised to INR 1,000 from INR 500 earlier.

Introduced in 2022, UPI123Pay is designed for feature phone users. It allows them to access UPI services without an internet connection in 12 languages. 

The post UPI Touches All-Time High In December With 16.73 Bn Transactions appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The year 2024 marked a significant turnaround for the Indian startup ecosystem, signalling recovery and growth after the market corrections of 2022 and 2023.

According to Inc42’s ‘Indian Tech Startup Funding Report 2024’, startups raised over $12 Bn in funding this year, a 20% increase from the $10 Bn raised last year. This growth shows a rebound in investor confidence and entrepreneurial momentum.

As of December 21, 2024, 993 funding deals were finalised, marking an 11% growth compared to the previous year. 

The year also witnessed a surge in IPO activity, with 13 new-age tech companies, including Swiggy, Go Digit, MobiKwik, Awfis, among others, making their stock market debut. Listed players like Zomato, Zaggle, and Nazara Technologies also raised additional funds. 

Leading the funding landscape in 2024 were fintech, consumer services, enterprise tech, and ecommerce sectors, which together accounted for two-third of the total funding raised. In terms of deal count, ecommerce took the top spot with 203 deals, followed by enterprise tech and fintech with 167 and 162 deals, respectively. 

Beyond the usual suspects, there was also a noticeable resurgence of investor interest across sectors such as edtech, healthtech and consumer services. Now, as we stand at the end of 2024, let’s take a look at the top funded sectors this year as part of Inc42’s ‘Year In Review’ series.

Fintech Leads The Way As The Most Funded Sector Of 2024

Fintech continued to dominate the investment landscape at the sectoral level in 2024 as well. Over 162 deals materialised in the sector this year, with startups collectively raising $2.5 Bn.

However, on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, total funding dropped 17% from $3 Bn raised across 129 deals last year. Despite this, fintech remained the standout sector and continued to be the most funded in India’s startup ecosystem.

Of the $893 Mn funding raised by seed stage startups in 2024, fintech startups accounted for 18.3%. The sector also emerged as the most funded one in terms of funding raised by growth stage and late stage startups. Among growth stage startups, fintech accounted for 17.1% of the $3.5 Bn raised. For late stage startups, fintech’s share was at 23.8% of the total $7 Bn in funding.

Finova Capital, Drip Capital, and M2P secured some of the biggest funding deals in the fintech sector this year. While Finova raised $135 Mn, Drip Capital and M2P bagged $113 Mn and $101 Mn, respectively.

Ecommerce A Strong Performer Despite Slowdown

On the back of the rapidly growing base of online shoppers and the growth of D2C platforms, ecommerce continued to be among the top funded sectors of 2024.

However, the sector saw a sharp decline in terms of funding amount. Ecommerce startups raised $1.5 Bn in 2024, down 42.3% compared to the $2.6 Bn raised in 2023. Despite this dip, the Indian ecommerce sector saw the maximum number of funding deals at 203 deals in 2024. 

As a result, ecommerce emerged as one of the most funded sectors in the early stage, with startups in the space raising $127 Mn out of the total $893 Mn raised by early stage ventures.

Some of the biggest deals of the year included those of Kushal’s, The Ayurveda Experience and Curefoods. While Kushal’s raised $34 Mn, The Ayurveda Experience secured $27 Mn and Curefoods raised $25 Mn. 

Another Strong Year For Enterprise Tech

Enterprise tech emerged as the third-most funded sector in India’s startup ecosystem in 2024, with over 167 startups raising $1.8 Bn. However, unlike fintech and ecommerce sectors, the funding amount for the enterprise tech sector zoomed 38.5% from $1.3 Bn in 2023, when 150 startups bagged capital.

The sector led the deal count at the seed stage, accounting for 21.5% of the total 433 deals. It also topped the funding amount, securing 28.1% of the total $893 Mn raised.

Enterprise tech also witnessed some of the largest funding rounds of the year, including iBUS’ $200 Mn fundraise, and Whatfix’s $125 Mn deal.

Zepto’s $1.3 Bn Fundraise Boosts Consumer Services’ Fortunes

The year gone by also saw consumer services emerge as one of the most funded sectors in 2024. With a funding of $1.8 Bn across 48 deals, the sector saw significant growth this year compared to $385 Mn raised across 39 deals in 2023. 

This increase largely on the back of the mega funding rounds of quick commerce major Zepto, which raised $1.3 Bn in total across three separate rounds. The rise in funding indicates a strong surge in investor interest in the consumer services space.

The consumer services sector has been buoyed by the rise of quick commerce, which has seen rapid growth in popularity over the last couple of years. This is evident in the performance of first movers like Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart, and Zepto, which together reported over $1 Bn in revenue in the fiscal year 2023-24 (FY24). 

Cleantech Continues To Prowl In The Shadows

Grabbing the fourth spot on the list of the most funded sectors of 2024 was the cleantech sector.  It saw 75 deals totalling $829 Mn this year, a slight decline from $861 Mn raised in 2023 via 57  deals. The increase in the number of deals shows a dip in the average deal size in 2024. 

The funding in the cleantech sector came on the back of investments in solar power, EV infrastructure, and budding innovation in green hydrogen and nuclear fusion. However, it is also pertinent to note that the cleantech space has been on a decline since at least 2022. 

Although two-thirds of India’s 800 climate tech startups have secured seed funding, less than 3% have raised Series B or beyond, highlighting the need for later-stage investments to scale impactful solutions.

Meanwhile, healthtech moved ahead of deeptech to claim the fifth spot in 2024, raising $716 Mn across 78 deals. This surge came due to the growing adoption of AI by startups. Meanwhile, the deeptech sector secured $460 Mn across 73 deals in 2024. 

Peering Into The Crystal Ball: What 2025 Holds For The Startup Ecosystem

The year 2024 saw India’s startup ecosystem staging a rebound, signaling its ability to bounce back and adapt despite global economic challenges. With a notable increase in overall funding, deal activity, and IPO momentum, the ecosystem demonstrated renewed investor confidence and entrepreneurial vigor. 

Going forward, the year 2025 is expected to bring new challenges and avenues of growth for Indian startups. For starters, GenAI startups are expected to rake in a funding of $395 Mn (up 36% YoY), driven primarily by innovations in vertical AI, enterprise AI, and responsible AI sub-segments.

Besides, the consumer services sector is projected to raise capital north of $2 Bn (+11% YoY), fueled by growing popularity of quick commerce and subscription services. Meanwhile, cleantech will remain a critical sector, with a focus on EV components, climate tech, charging infrastructure, and waste management. 

Inc42 estimates the healthtech sector to lap up $850 Mn in funding (+21% YoY) in 2024 on the back of increasing use of AI in healthcare, biotechnology, and fitness solutions. The edtech sector is likely to continue to face headwinds, with funding anticipated to decline by 33% to $400 Mn. However, the startups in the sector will see new opportunities through innovation in AI-driven tutoring and gamified education platforms.

Ecommerce funding is expected to grow 20% YoY to $1.8 Bn in 2025, with emphasis on instant delivery, hybrid retail, and clean-label brands.

“With 2024 being a successful year for the ecommerce industry, 2025 is poised for even greater growth. This growth will be driven by an increasing number of online shoppers, particularly from Tier II & III cities, where improved digital literacy and internet accessibility are expanding the consumer base,” according to coupons and cashback app CashKaro’s cofounder Rohan Bhargava.

[Edited By Vinaykumar Rai]

The post From Ecommerce To Fintech: Here Are The Top Funded Startup Sectors Of 2024 appeared first on Inc42 Media.