Indian Startups Funding Update

This week, Indian startups secured a total of $383.5 million through 5 growth-stage deals, 21 early-stage deals, and 1 undisclosed arrangement. The week also saw 8 important hires, 2 new fund launches, and 3 mergers and acquisitions. In comparison, 17 startups had amassed approximately $82.2 million the prior week.

Growth-stage Deals

Growth-stage startups raised around $273.7 million via six deals this week, with River Mobility leading the charge through a $120 million Series C funding round backed by Elev8 and Claypond Capital. Leap India also obtained Rs 371.3 crore in a pre-IPO placement from GIC subsidiary Gamnat Pte Ltd. Following close behind was AI unicorn Sarvam, securing $74 million in the extension of its Series B round, led by NVIDIA Corporation. Among other notable deals, BlissClub received Rs 160 crore in Series B funding from Singularity AMC, Matel Motion & Energy Solutions attracted Rs 130 crore (approximately $15 million) from UC Impower, and Mintoak captured Rs 80 crore (around $9 million) in acquisition financing from BlackSoil.

Early-stage Deals

Early-stage startups generated $109.8 million through 19 deals this week, with InRisk Labs leading with a $27 million Series A funding round co-led by Bessemer Venture Partners and Northpoint Capital. HomeRun followed closely with a $12 million Series A led by Nexus Venture Partners, while Mitti Labs and Pinegap raised $9.5 million and $8 million, respectively. Other startups that secured funds this week included Vaaree, GetVantage, Kaapi Machines, Solinas Integrity, Benne, along with 14 other early-stage ventures.

City and Segment-wise Deals

Bengaluru emerged as the leading region for funding with 16 startup deals during the week, followed by Pune and Delhi-NCR, each with 4 deals. Mumbai and Chennai also recorded several deals. Segment-wise, AI dominated with six deals, while fintech and deeptech each garnered 4 deals. Sectors such as e-commerce, manufacturing, mobility, supply chain, and others also secured funding during the week.

Series-wise Deals

Seed rounds were the most active this week, with 11 deals, followed by 8 Series A deals. Series B, pre-Series A, Series C, pre-IPO, debt, and angel rounds also saw activity throughout the week.

Week-on-week Funding Trend

Compared to the previous week, startup funding surged 4.7X to $383.5 million, a notable rise from approximately $82.2 million raised the previous week. Over the last eight weeks, the average funding has been around $316 million, with an average of 21 deals executed each week.

Key Hirings

This week, Razorpay bolstered its AI leadership team by bringing on board Sudhir Reddy from Divyam.ai, Abhishek Agarwal from Microsoft, Bhavya Shivaprakash from Salesforce, and Anuj Mathur from CRED. InsuranceDekho appointed Rohan Mittal as Group CFO, while Honasa Consumer promoted Nilesh Kotalwar to Chief Marketing Officer. Atoms named Gautam Gupta as CFO, InCred Capital appointed Abhinav Khanna as CEO of Capital Markets, and Medi Assist brought in Gaurav Bhatnagar as Chief TPA Officer.

Fund Launches

This week, Lighthouse Canton concluded a Rs 105 crore private credit investment in Emerald Leisures through its India-focused Category II AIF. Additionally, Piper Serica announced the first close of its Rs 800 crore Bharat Tech Fund at Rs 300 crore. This Category II AIF aims to invest in Indian deeptech startups across various sectors such as semiconductors, defence, spacetech, fintech, robotics, and biosciences.

Mergers and Acquisitions

Imarticus Learning acquired Singapore-based BELLS Institute of Higher Learning, Mintoak took over ICC Loyalty to enhance its presence in international markets, and Times Network purchased fintech startup OpiGo for an undisclosed sum to strengthen ET NOW’s investment-focused financial services offerings.

Financial Results This Week

New Launches and Partnerships

Mobility startup E3 Electric.AI introduced its smart e-scooter E3 TRION. Meanwhile, super.money entered the commerce space with the launch of its instalment platform splitStore. Additionally, Probe42 unveiled P&P CERSAI and Mercury to enhance secured lending options for banks.

News Flash This Week

Elevation Capital has realised nearly Rs 6,000 crore from IPOs and secondary stake sales over the last 15 months. Shiprocket trimmed its IPO size by 31% in the red herring prospectus to Rs 1,617 crore, set to open on August 12. Peak XV and Elevation Capital sold a 2.27% stake in Meesho for Rs 1,949 crore through block deals. Pine Labs has been restructuring its POS strategy by investing in Blinkit and Zepto for gift card offerings. The offshore betting platform 1xBet gained exposure in India during the country’s recent cricket tour of Zimbabwe, featuring on platforms such as FanCode, Zee, and Sony LIV despite government advisories against offshore betting promotions. KKR-backed LEAP India filed for an RHP for a Rs 2,480 crore IPO opening August 7. Additionally, the Startup Foundry by Newton School of Technology helps students create market-ready startups before graduation. PhonePe’s Daily SIPs are making wealth creation more accessible by allowing investments from just ₹10 daily, attracting over half a million unique investors since the initiative’s launch in December 2025. Elevation Capital continues to manage its portfolio, which exceeds ₹20,000 crore in listed startups such as Meesho, Paytm, and Urban Company. Shiprocket’s IPO is now valued at around ₹7,057 crore following the reduction of its offering size. The betting platform 1xBet has raised questions regarding the visibility and accountability of offshore advertising. The fintech platform super.money has inaugurated splitStore, offering a zero-interest instalment shopping experience across a variety of brands without requiring a credit card. Lastly, Probe42 has launched new solutions including P&P CERSAI for security registration data access and Mercury, an AI-driven research assistant for efficient business insights.