Among the growth-stage deals, 13 startups secured $309.7 million in funding this week. Leading the pack, SEDEMAC, a manufacturer of auto parts and powertrain controls, received $100 million in both secondary and primary funding. Following this, Infra.Market, a B2B and retail construction material firm, raised $50 million, while EV company Ather Energy secured $34.5 million through debt and equity funding. Other notable mentions include Euler Motors, RDC Concrete, Orbicular Pharmaceutical, and Zypp Electric.
In the early-stage sector, 20 startups garnered $77.53 million in total funding. Topping this list was Technosport, a D2C sports apparel maker, followed by Libas, a fast fashion omnichannel ethnic wear brand, Vegapay, a digital lending and card management platform, Turno, a Commercial EV distribution and financing platform, and DiFACTO, a robot automation solutions provider. Additionally, six startups—Yali Aerospace, Solinas, TechEagle, Aprecomm, Devigere, and Kidbea—did not disclose their funding amounts.
E-commerce, fintech, and EV startups dominated the segment-wise deals, securing the top three spots with nine, six, and five deals respectively. They were followed by startups in foodtech, SaaS, agritech, cleantech, and dronetech.
In terms of series-wise deals, Seed funding led with eight deals, followed by seven Series A and six Pre-Seed deals. Pre-Series A and Series B saw five and three deals respectively, with Debt, Series C, and Series B also featuring. Overall, startup funding fell by nearly 13% to $387 million compared to the previous week's $444 million. Over the last eight weeks, the average funding has been around $289 million with 28 deals per week.
Notable hirings included Vikaram Agarwal as COO at InCred, Varun Khare as COO at Paytm Insider, and Anil Mehta as Independent Director at Yubi (CredAvenue). Puneet Kumar joined Nexus Venture Partners as a venture partner. In departures, Cashaa Founder Kumar Gaurav stepped down as CEO, and Paytm’s CHRO Swati Rustagi reportedly left the company, likely heading to Adobe.
Seven new funds were launched this week. 360 ONE Asset introduced a Rs 4,000 crore Secondaries Fund for late-stage startups, and Avendus launched a Rs 3,000 crore fund focusing on financial services, technology, and healthcare. Sorin Investments closed its first fund at Rs 1,350 crore, targeting tech. RPSG Capital Ventures and Sauce VC raised Rs 550 crore and Rs 250 crore respectively for early-stage consumer ventures, while Holani Consultants closed its first venture capital fund at Rs 184 crore. Additionally, the Massive Earth Foundation, in partnership with UNEP, launched the fourth Low Carbon Earth Accelerator program.
In M&A activity, Y Combinator-backed BNPL fintech startup BharatX acquired healthcare finance startup Zenifi. Honasa Consumer Ltd, the parent company of brands like Mamaearth, acquired the assets of CosmoGenesis Labs to boost its R&D and manufacturing capabilities. Times Network expanded its digital publishing portfolio by acquiring Digit.in from 9.9 Group.
AiDash, an enterprise SaaS firm, initiated its first Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) buyback program following a $58.5 million Series C funding round, totaling $91.5 million in raised funds. This buyback targets full-time employees with over three years of tenure.
Potential market moves include Atlys, an online visa application platform, which is in early talks to raise $15-18 million in a Series B round, with support from Peak XV and others. Bengaluru-based healthtech startup Medibuddy is raising $8.4 million in debt funding from Innoven Capital and Alteria Capital. Additionally, Amazon is nearing the acquisition of MX Player from Times Internet, marking its second attempt after previous negotiations in 2023 fell through. Current discussions are in late stages, with a term sheet already offered.
Comments