Here’s the lowdown of the top deals from the startup space this week.
Ola raises $500 mn through Term Loan B
Ride-hailing platform Ola has raised $500 million debt from marquee international institutional investors.
The company has raised the amount via Term Loan B (TLB). Institutional investors that seek higher yields and can stay invested over longer investment horizons compared to traditional banks offering such loans. TLBs usually have a floating interest rate with tenures of 5-7 years.
The proposed loan issuance received a staggering response from investors with interest and commitment of approximately $1.5 billion, the company said.
Ola will utilise the term loan to fuel its vision for the future of mobility across its various businesses including ride hailing, vehicle commerce, delivery with foods, quick commerce and financial services, it further added.
Sharechat raises $266 mn, valued at $3.7 bn
Mohalla Tech, the parent company behind Moj and ShareChat, has raised $266 million as part of its Series G round.
At a valuation of $ 3.7 billion, the investment has been led by Alkeon Capital with participation from new and existing investors, including Temasek, Moore Strategic Ventures (MSV), Harbourvest and India Quotient.
This is the third round of funding for the startup in 2021, which has cumulatively raised US $913 million this year. The company is expected to raise the second tranche of this round in a few months, with the valuation expected to cross $5 billion, as per sources.
Healthtech startup Innovaccer raises $150 mn, valued at $3.2 bn
Healthtech startup Innovaccer has raised a $150 million in a Series E funding round led by Mubadala Capital, at a valuation of $3.2 billion.
Other investors including B Capital Group, Microsoft’s M12 fund, OMERS Growth Equity, Dragoneer, Steadview Capital, Tiger Global Management, Whale Rock Capital Management, Avidity Partners, and Schonfeld Strategic Advisors also participated in this round.
With this investment, Innovacer has raised a total of over $375 million in funding. The company plans to use its new funding to invest in R&D and recruit new hires as it rapidly scales its customer experience, product, and engineering talent, it said in a statement.
Ninjacart bags $145 mn in fresh funding from Flipkart, Walmart
Agritech startup Ninjacart has bagged $145 million in a fresh round of funding from existing investor, US retail giant Walmart and its Indian e-commerce arm Flipkart.
This is the third time Flipkart has invested the in fresh produce supply chain company.
The startup will use the freshly infused capital for technology upgradation and better infrastructure to organise, empower and enhance the lives of millions of agri-value chain participants including farmers, resellers, retailers, consumers, and supply chain participants, the company said in a statement.
Venture Catalysts plans to invest $108 mn in Indian startups in 2022
Early-stage startup investor Venture Catalysts has plans to invest $108 million in about 300 startups in 2022.
Founded in 2016, the Venture Catalysts group closed as many as 207 deals in 2021, and invested in 178 unique startups.
The integrated startup incubator said it will continue to in sectors such as FinTech, EduTech, AgriTech, FMCG, e-commerce, logistics and supply chain management.
Fintech startup Uni raises $70 mn from General Catalyst
Fintech startup Uni has raised $70 million in Series A funding round led by General Catalyst, with participation from Eight Roads Ventures, Elevation Capital, Arbor Ventures and existing investors Lightspeed and Accel.
The funds will be utilised to scale up the team, launch new products and invest further in technology to redefine consumer experience, the startup's co-founder and Chief Executive Nitin Gupta said.
Including the latest funding round, Uni has raised $88.5 million so far. The firm aims to bring in a range of credit products starting with its 'pay later' card, 'Pay 1/3rd' card.
Juspay raises $60 mn from Softbank Vision Fund
Juspay Technologies has announced $60 million in Series C funding led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 with participation from existing investors VEF and Wellington Management.
The firm intends to invest the funds in technology and product development to scale its business in payments and product adjacencies like credit -- both in India and globally. Avendus Capital has advised Juspay in this funding round.
Founded in 2012, Juspay processes 11 million transactions per day, including for leading merchants like Amazon, Flipkart and Swiggy.
Hevo Data gets $30 mn in Series B round from Sequoia India
SaaS startup Hevo Data has raised $30 million in a Series B round led by Sequoia Capital India.
The round also witnessed the participation of Qualgro, Lachy Groom, Chiratae Ventures, and other angel investors.
The company said it will use the funds raised to scale sales and marketing efforts, double the focus on building new products, and build teams in the US and Europe.
Smartworks to invest $25 mn in new tech venture for workspace management
Smartworks, which provides managed office space, will invest $25 million (nearly Rs 190 crore) in its new tech venture that will offer services related to workspace management, as part of its plan to grow business.
The new firm 'Smartworks Technology Services' will be a 100 percent subsidiary of Smartworks and aims to launch a building operating platform and workspace management SaaS product.
Smartworks has appointed Anuj Nangpal the CEO to head this new venture.
Fullife Healthcare raises $22 mn in Series C round from Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia
Sports nutrition and supplements company Fullife Healthcare has raised $22 million in a Series C funding round led by Morgan Stanley Private Equity Asia (MSPEA).
The healthtech startup will use fresh funds to expand their domestic presence, enhance manufacturing capabilities and accelerate momentum globally.
The firm said its home-grown brands Fast&Up and Chicnutrix have been aggressively entering into new categories to providing nutrition solutions for a healthy and active lifestyle.
We Founder Circle pumps in $12 mn across 30 startups in first year
We Founder Circle (WFC), a founder-driven angel network, has invested $12 million in 30 startups across 10 sectors in its first year of its operation across the investment deals.
A majority of the investments are in the D2C segment, followed by agritech, fintech and edtech, among others. Currently, the investor is focussing on women entrepreneurs who are 30% of its start-up portfolio, it said in a statement.
WFC claimed that around 20% of its portfolio startups are also funded by the unicorn founders and more than 25% of WFC backed startups have female founders.
Varanium Capital closes final round of fintech VC fund at Rs 140 crore
Varanium NexGen Fund, a fintech-focused venture capital (VC) fund of Varanium Capital has marked its final close at Rs 140 crore.
The fund invests in early-stage fintech startups and its investors include family offices, financial institutions, professionals, and entrepreneurs including former CEOs and CXOs of banks, said the company in a statement.
The fund has so far invested in five startups and has made commitments to three more startups. It aims to make investments in 14-18 startups in total, it said. Current investments include Homecapital, Riskcovry, Easebuzz, TartanHQ and Dronapay.
9Unicorns, Chiratae Ventures & others lead $9.5 mn round in edtech startup ByteLearn
AI-based teaching assistant startup ByteLearn has raised $9.5 million in its seed round and came out of its stealth mode. The platform is now open for early access.
The investment was led by 9Unicorns, Chiratae Ventures and Leo Capital. It also saw participation from Venture Catalysts, Goodwater Capital, Earlsfield Capital, Kettleborough VC, PitchRight Ventures, AdvantEdge VC. Several investors such as Growthstory’ Srini Rai, F9’s Anand Chandrasekaran, Arun Tadanki, Jio’s Vikas Choudhury, BrightChamps’ Ravi Bhushan, among others also pitched in.
The company said it will use the funds for product development, global expansion and enhancing its technological capabilities.
SaaS startup for SMEs TranZact bags $7 mn in Series A round
A SME-focused SaaS startup, TranZact has raised $7 million in Series A funding from Tribe Capital along with the participation of Prime Venture Partners, Gemba Capital and Kae Capital.
Angel investors such as Suhail Sameer of BharatPe, Sriram Krishnan, Ex Spotify/Tinder; Zetwerk co-founders; OfBusiness co-founders; Devendra Rane, Paytm; Giridhar Malpani, Climber Capital; and Krishna Khandelwal of Locus.sh, also participated in this funding round.
This funding will help accelerate TranZact’s vision of onboarding over 1 million SMEs in the next 12 months. TranZact also plans to invest in new talent and expand its team across all functions, it said in a statement.
Nexprt raises $5M mn in seed round from Sequoia Capital India & others
B2B manufacturing and commerce startup Nexprt has raised $5 million in seed funding from Sequoia Capital India and Lightspeed.
The round also saw participation from early backers, Titan Capital and other notable angel investors.
The company plans to use the proceeds to scale the existing business and launch new business verticals in the manufacturing domain, it said in a statement.
(Edited by : Vijay Anand)
Check out our in-depth Market Coverage, Business News & get real-time Stock Market Updates on CNBC-TV18. Also, Watch our channels CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz and CNBC Bajar Live on-the-go!
BJP is planning to ban RSS, says Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray
May 18, 2024 8:01 PM
Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Complete list of Congress candidates
May 18, 2024 4:08 PM
Punjab Lok Sabha elections: Check full list of AAP candidates and constituencies
May 18, 2024 12:59 PM
PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi election rallies in Delhi today: Here are the routes to avoid
May 18, 2024 11:28 AM