SUMMARY
Indian startups raised $48 Mn in funding across 8 deals this week, a 72% lower from the previous week
BluSmart is raising $25 Mn from responsAbility Investments AG, making the biggest funding round of this week.
NODWIN Gaming to invests €8 Mn in Germany-based marketing services company for gaming and esports, Freaks 4U Gaming GmbH
Funding momentum across the Indian startup ecosystem took a dive both in terms of value and volume, as the interim budget week limited the activity through the week. Between January 29 and February 3, the startups collectively secured $48 Mn across 8 deals, marking a 71.7% slump from $170 Mn raised across 13 deals in the previous week.
Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Jan 29 – Feb 3]
| Date | Name | Sector | Subsector | Business Model | Funding Round Size | Funding Round Type | Investors | Lead Investor |
| 29 Jan 2024 | BluSmart | Cleantech | Electric Vehicle | B2C | $25 Mn | – | responsAbility Investments AG | |
| 29 Jan 2024 | Grow Indigo | Cleantech | Climate Tech | B2B | $8 Mn | – | Indigo Ag, Mayhco | |
| 31 Jan 2024 | p0 | Enterprisetech | Horizontal SaaS | B2B | $6.5 Mn | Seed | Lightspeed Venture Partners | |
| 31 Jan 2024 | Aquaconnect | Agritech | Maket Linkage | B2B-B2C | $4 Mn | Pre-Series B | S2G Ventures | S2G Ventures |
| 30 Jan 2024 | Electrifi Mobility | Cleantech | Electric Vehicle | B2C | $3 Mn | – | Asian Development Bank (ADB) Ventures, AdvantEdge Founders | |
| 30 Jan 2024 | ClearTrust | Enterprisetech | Horizontal SaaS | B2B | $1.9 Mn | – | Ideaspring Capital, Piper Serica Angel Fund, Alacrity India | Ideaspring Capital |
| 30 Jan 2024 | Arzooo | Enterprisetech | Vertical SaaS | B2B | – | Extended Series B | – | |
| 1 Feb 2024 | boAt | Ecommerce | D2C | B2C | – | – | Ranveer Singh | |
| Source: Inc42 *Part of a larger round Note: Only disclosed funding rounds have been included |
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Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week
- Delhi NCR-based EV startup BluSmart is raising $25 Mn from responsAbility Investments AG, making the biggest funding round of this week.
- Fuelled by BluSmart’s funding, cleantech emerged as the most funded sector this week, raising $36 Mn across three deals
- The cleantech sector and enterprise tech reported a maximum of three deals this week, while the enterpristech space bagged $8.4 Mn in funding
- This week, seed funding dropped to $6.5 Mn.
Other Major Developments From This Week
- Dairy tech startup Stellapps is in talks with its existing investors to raise around $20 Mn in its Series C funding round, Inc42 exclusively reported. The round is likely to see participation from new investors.
- Edtech giant BYJU’S has kicked off rights issues procedures to raise $200 Mn from its existing shareholders at a $225 Mn valuation.
- Ranjan Pai likely to infuse an additional up to $60 Mn into Aakash
- The Circle Founders Club has launched an accelerator programme to empower early-stage climatetech startups that solve water-related problems in India.
- The Karnataka government launched an INR 20 Cr VC fund that will invest in the animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC) startups.
- Asianxt Digital Technologies is likely to raise around $10 and $15 Mn to make its foray into the social media space with a short-format video app shortly.
- Nazara Technologies’ NODWIN Gaming will be investing €8 Mn in Germany-based marketing services company for gaming and esports, Freaks 4U Gaming GmbH.
