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Indian Startup Funding and Acquisitions News [02 – 07 Sep]

Unicommerce, an e-commerce SaaS platform, reported a 3% increase in revenue and a 22% rise in profit for Q1 FY25 compared to Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations grew to Rs 27.4 crore, while profit reached Rs 3.5 crore. This growth was supported by controlled expenditure, with the firm spending Rs 24.2 crore on employee benefits, server hosting, and other overheads. Unicommerce operates in multiple countries, including India, Indonesia, and UAE, offering integrated e-commerce enablement solutions. The company's IPO, launched in August 2024, was oversubscribed by 168 times, with shares currently trading at Rs 221.97, giving it a market capitalization of Rs 2,273 crore (around $274 million).

Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [26 – 31 Aug]

During the week, 31 Indian startups raised around $490.32 million in funding. These deals count 7 growth-stage deals and 19 early-stage deals while 5 startups kept their transaction details undisclosed.

Zepto, a quick commerce company, has raised $340 million in a follow-on financing round led by General Catalyst, bringing its valuation to $5 billion, up from $3.6 billion in June. The firm has raised over $1 billion in 2024 and plans to double its dark stores to 700 by March 2025, expanding into new markets and strengthening its presence in metro cities. Zepto delivers over 10,000 products within 10 minutes nationwide, and the company is nearing EBITDA positivity with 140% year-on-year growth. Despite a 14-fold revenue increase to Rs 2,024 crore in FY23, its losses widened to Rs 1,272 crore. The quick commerce sector is heating up with competitors like Flipkart, BigBasket, and Amazon, with Blinkit currently leading the market.

Miko, a Mumbai-based robotics firm, raised Rs 20.5 crore ($2.5 million) in a new funding round after a two-year break, attracting investment from angel investors and Moneycrew Fintech. This latest equity infusion values the company at approximately Rs 1,711 crore ($206 million), a 2.3x increase since its last round. Miko, known for creating emotionally intelligent robots using AI and IoT, has launched advanced versions of its Miko robots that feature voice recognition and facial recognition technology. To date, Miko has raised over $60 million, including a $29 million Series B round led by IvyCap Ventures in 2021. The company saw impressive growth in FY23, with revenue increasing to Rs 225 crore from Rs 95 crore in FY22, although it reported a loss of Rs 108 crore.

FirstCry FY24 revenue crosses Rs 6,500 Cr; GlobalBees contributes 18.6%

In FY24, FirstCry's revenue from operations rose to ₹6,481 crore, up from ₹5,633 crore in FY23, reflecting a growth of 15.1%. During the same period, the company also reduced its losses by 34%.

Simplismart, a Bengaluru-based generative artificial intelligence startup founded in 2022 by Amritanshu Jain and Devansh Ghatak, is set to raise a new funding round led by Accel. The $7 million round, with participation from existing investors, will value the company at approximately $35 million. The startup enables businesses to develop scalable AI systems without coding, catering to both novice and expert users for machine learning model training and monitoring across various data types. Simplismart previously secured seed funding from Anicut Capital, Sunn91, First Cheque, and Shastra VC. The funding surge reflects a broader trend, with the generative AI sector in India witnessing significant growth and funding, underscored by recent initiatives like AWS ML Elevate and reports from NASSCOM and TheKredible highlighting substantial investment in similar startups.

Farm-to-fork firm Otipy is raising $10 million in an extended Series B round from new and existing investors, 28 months after its $32 million Series B in March 2022. The new capital will bolster operations in Delhi (NCR) and Mumbai, and support expansion to Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Otipy, which sources fresh produce directly from farmers, achieves a monthly GMV of Rs 20 crore with a Rs 3 crore burn rate. The company aims to achieve EBITDA breakeven in FY25. Supported by over 20,000 farmers and 1,000 partners, Otipy saw over 50% growth to Rs 173 crore in FY24 and reduced losses by 21%. Otipy has raised $44 million to date.

Indian startups show sign of recovery with $7 Bn funding in H1 2024

Indian startups raised nearly $7 billion in funding during the first half of 2024. This is more than the $5.92 billion raised in H1 2023. But it’s also far less than $20 billion in H1 2022 which now seems like the golden phase for startups, at least in terms of venture capital inflow.

WROGN, a men’s apparel brand, has secured Rs 125 crore ($15 million) in funding from TMRW House of Brands, owned by Aditya Birla Group. This investment grants TMRW a 16% stake in WROGN, valuing the company at approximately $105 million. Founded in 2014 by Anjana and Vikram Reddy, WROGN focuses on casual wear endorsed by cricketer Virat Kohli. The funding aims to bolster WROGN’s presence on platforms like Myntra, expand offline stores, and enhance its direct-to-consumer operations. Despite a recent slowdown in growth, WROGN targets revenue of Rs 1,500 crore over the next 5 years. TMRW’s investment expands its portfolio to eight Indian fashion brands, reflecting a strategic move in India’s burgeoning $110 billion fashion and lifestyle market.

Six months after filing a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP), Ola Electric has received approval for its IPO from the Security Exchange Board of India (SEBI). In December 2023, the company filed to raise Rs 5,500 crore ($660 million). Major stakeholders include Bhavish Aggarwal (36.94%), SoftBank (21.98%), Tiger Global (6.03%), Indus Trust (3.85%), and Alpha Wave (3.49%). Since filing, Ola Electric has raised $62 million in debt, including $50 million from EvolutionX in April, accumulating over $1 billion in total funding. The company's revenue surged seven-fold to Rs 2,631 crore in FY23, but losses increased by 87.76% to Rs 1,472 crore. Competitor Ather Energy is also planning an IPO. Startup IPOs are gaining momentum in 2024.

Monthly Startup Funding Report- May 2024

Indian startups mopped up $1.34 billion across 128 deals in May. This included 39 growth-stage deals worth $1.19 billion and 66 early-stage deals amounting to $154 million. There were 23 undisclosed rounds, primarily early-stage deals.

Lenskart secured $200 million in secondary investment from Temasek and Fidelity, valuing it over $5 billion. This investment brings Lenskart's total capital raised to nearly $1 billion in 18 months. The company, led by Peyush Bansal, was last valued at $4.5 billion in June. Lenskart operates over 2,500 stores, mainly in India, and has expanded internationally. It invested in brands like GeoIQ and Owndays through its subsidiary, Neso Brands. Lenskart’s FY23 revenue rose to Rs 3,788 crore, reducing losses by 37.3%. The company plans to build a mega factory near Bengaluru airport.

Ecom Express reported revenue exceeding ₹2,500 Cr in FY23

Funding and acquisitions in Indian startups this week [22-27 Apr]