Indian startups cumulatively raised $265.2 Mn via 16 deals, a 33% decline from the $395.63 Mn raised via 20 deals in the preceding week
The week saw a mega deal materialise with Bluestone raising $107.2 Mn in its pre-IPO round
Seed funding continued to move in a downward trajectory this week, with startups raising $1 Mn in the week, an 88 decline from last week’s $8.85 Mn funding
Funding momentum across the Indian startup ecosystem took a blow in the third week of the ongoing month after bucking an uptick trend in investment activity. Between August 19 and 24, startups raised $265.2 Mn across 16 deals, a 33% decline from the $395.63 Mn raised via 20 deals in the preceding week.
Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [ Aug 19-24 ]
| Date | Name | Sector | Subsector | Business Model | Funding Round Size | Funding Round Type | Investors | Lead Investor |
| 22 Aug 2024 | BlueStone | Ecommerce | D2C | B2C | $107.2 Mn | – | Peak XV Partners, Prosus, Steadview Capital, Think Investments, Pratithi Investments | – |
| 21 Aug 2024 | E2E Networks | Enterprise Tech | Horizontal SaaS | B2B | $50.1 Mn | – | – | – |
| 21 Aug 2024 | Livpure | Ecommerce | D2C | B2C | $27.8 Mn | – | M&G Investments, Ncubate Capital Partners | – |
| 21 Aug 2024 | Aye Finance | Fintech | Lendingtech | B2B | $25 Mn | – | Goldman Sachs (India) Finance | Goldman Sachs (India) Finance |
| 23 Aug 2024 | axio | Fintech | Lendingtech | B2B-B2C | $20 Mn | – | Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund | Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund |
| 17 Aug 2024 | FlexiLoans* | Fintech | Lendingtech | B2C | $9 Mn | Debt | JM Financials | JM Financials |
| 21 Aug 2024 | uppercase | Ecommerce | D2C | B2C | $9 Mn | Series B | Accel, Sixth Sense Ventures, Akash Bhansali | Accel |
| 21 Aug 2024 | Zoff | Ecommerce | D2C | B2C | $4.7 Mn | – | JM Financial Private Equity | JM Financial Private Equity |
| 21 Aug 2024 | TransBnk | Fintech | Fintech SaaS | B2B | $4 Mn | Series A | 8i Ventures, Accion Venture Lab, GMO Venture Partners, Ratio Ventures, Force Ventures | 8i Ventures, Accion Venture Lab |
| 23 Aug 2024 | LoanKuber | Fintech | Lendingtech | B2B | $3.5 Mn | Pre-Series B | Inflection Point Ventures, TRTL VC, Auxano, LetsVenture, Mavuca Capital, Ruchi Deepak, Prashant Tandon, Pankaj Vermani | Inflection Point Ventures, TRTL VC |
| 23 Aug 2024 | Fabrication Bazar | Enterprise Tech | Enterprise Services | B2B | $3 Mn | Pre-Series A | Physis Capital, ICMG, Inflection Point Ventures | Physis Capital |
| 22 Aug 2024 | LLUMO AI | Enterprise Tech | Horizontal SaaS | B2B | $1 Mn | Seed | SenseAI Ventures, India Quotient, AumVC, Venture Catalyst, IIM Indore Alumni Angel Fund | SenseAI Ventures |
| 22 Aug 2024 | Dopplr | Enterprise Tech | Vertical SaaS | B2B | $750K | – | Cornerstone Ventures, BAT VC | Cornerstone Ventures |
| 22 Aug 2024 | Favcy | Enterprise Tech | Enterprise Services | B2B | $214K | – | – | – |
| 21 Aug 2024 | NxtQube | Deeptech | Drone Tech | B2B | – | Seed | Venture Catalysts, Pontaq VC, Ananta Bizcon LLP, Rushikesh Bhandari | Venture Catalysts |
| 21 Aug 2024 | Humanize | Enterprise Tech | Horizontal SaaS | B2B | – | – | NLB Services | NLB Services |
| Source: Inc42 *Included this week as it was skipped in last week’s edition Note: Only disclosed funding rounds have been included |
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Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week
- The week saw lone mega fundraise with omnichannel jewellery startup Bluestone bagging $107.2 Mn (INR 900 Cr) in its pre-IPO round from Peak XV Partners, Prosus, Steadview Capital, Think Investments and Pratithi Investments.
- Buoyed by Bluestone’s funding round, ecommerce emerged as a sectoral leader this week. as startups raised $148.7 Mn via 4 deals in the week.
- Fintech sector trailed behind ecommerce at a sectoral level, with startups in the sector securing $61.5 Mn via 5 deals. Notable deals in the sector included Aye Finance’s $25 Mn loan from Goldman Sachs (India) and axio’s $20 Mn fundraise from Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund.
- Enterprise tech sector hogged the limelight with the maximum number of deals this week with startups raising $55.06 Mn via six deals.
- JM Financial Private Equity, Inflection Point Ventures and Venture Catalysts emerged as the most active investors this week, backing two startups each.
- However, seed funding continued to move in a downward trajectory this week with LLUMO AI bagging $1 Mn cheque.
Startup Fund Launches Of This Week
- Gujarat-based micro venture capital firm Volt VC launched its early-stage focused maiden fund with a target corpus of INR 45 Cr. With this, it will focus on pre-seed investments in consumer-focused businesses across sectors like D2C, B2C and B2B2C models.
- Edtech unicorn PhysicsWallah has floated ‘PW School of Startups’, INR 100 Cr fund to back more than 100 startups. As per the company, the PW SOS will provide a platform for entrepreneurs to access cost effective ideation programmes, practical training, mentorship and capital raising opportunities.
- Ex-Venture Highway lead investor Aviral Bhatnagar launched a new venture capital fund called AJVC, which will focus on pre-seed investments. AJVC’s first fund received SEBI approval last week.
Other Developments Of The Week
- Flipkart backer Chiratae Ventures announced the third cohort of its flagship seed investment programme Chiratae Sonic. The initiative targets early-stage startups looking to raise up to $2 Mn in funding.
- Titan Capital Winners Fund, backed by Snapdeal cofounders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal, has raised a target corpus of INR 200 Cr to invest in follow-on rounds of breakout startups from its seed portfolio. Bahl and Bansal will anchor the fund as its largest investors.
- IPO-bound meat delivery startup Zappfresh acquired Mumbai-based meat and seafood delivery brand Bonsaro in an all-cash deal. The acquisition sees Zappfresh take over Bonsaro’s entire operations and business, including all the assets, to expand its presence in the western pocket.
- VC firm Ankur Capital’s fund III, which aims to raise a target corpus of INR 1,200 Cr, has received commitments from two existing limited partners (LPs).
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