This week, Indian startups raised $356.8 million across six growth-stage deals, 17 early-stage deals, and two undisclosed funding rounds. The week also saw five significant appointments, one exit, two mergers and acquisitions, and a new fund launch. In comparison, the previous week saw 25 startups collectively raising about $303.7 million.
Growth-Stage Deals
Growth-stage startups garnered $182 million through six deals this week. The Bengaluru-based restaurant firm Popo Global topped the list, securing $56 million from Artal Asia. Women’s wellness brand Nua followed closely with a $50 million Series C round led by Peak XV Partners.
Workforce accommodation venture HerSpace Manufacturing obtained a $40 million investment from Gray Matters Capital, while swift food delivery service Swish raised $24 million led by Bertelsmann India Investments. Fleet management platform Carrum Mobility acquired $10 million in a Series B round led by Uber, and pet food brand Lickicious brought in Rs 19 crore led by Prath Ventures.
Early-Stage Deals
Early-stage startups accumulated $174.8 million across 15 deals this week. Space-tech startup Pixxel headed the queue with a significant $100 million Series C round, co-led by Temasek and Seraphim Space. Cybersecurity company QNu Labs followed, raising Rs 200 crore in a Series A1 round co-led by the National Quantum Mission and Speciale Invest.
The cardless payments platform Piston raised $15 million in a Series A round led by FPV Ventures, while AI-based patient safety enterprise Graph AI secured $13.3 million led by Insight Partners. Fashion label Theater raised Rs 75 crore at a post-money valuation of Rs 410 crore, and the Cooling-as-a-Service platform Circolife secured $4.5 million.
Other funded initiatives included voice AI startup Navana.ai, B2B pharma distribution platform Fundly.ai, AI-powered water infrastructure company DigitalPaani, among others. YoLearn.ai, SpeakX, Neurotech, and deep tech firm BQP also attracted funding, though specific amounts remain undisclosed.
City and Segment-Wise Deals
Bengaluru dominated the funding landscape with 14 startup deals this week, followed by Delhi-NCR with four. Mumbai, Thane, and Kerala also observed notable funding activity.
AI startups led in terms of deals, with five agreements, while sectors like foodtech, healthtech, fintech, F&B, and deeptech each accounted for two deals, alongside other areas such as spacetech, proptech, mobility, and e-commerce experiencing funding action.
Series-Wise Deals
Series A and seed rounds came out on top this week with seven deals each, followed by Series B, pre-seed, and undisclosed rounds, which each had two deals. Series C and pre-Series A saw one deal apiece.
Week-on-Week Funding Trend
This week, startup funding increased by over 17% to $356.8 million, up from $303.7 million raised last week. The average weekly funding over the last eight weeks has been approximately $232.37 million across 21 deals.
Key Hirings / Departures
Enterprise software startup Whatfix appointed its co-founder Vara Kumar as CEO, following the passing of co-founder Khadim Batti on September 1. NIIF named Gauravjit Singh as managing partner and global head of capital formation.
Bhartiya Converge selected Eric Pagdiwalla as chief operating officer, while Honasa Consumer promoted Nishchay Bahl to chief business officer, offline. Ajit Mohan stepped down as Snap’s chief business officer to return to Singapore to spend quality time with his family, leading to the appointment of EMEA President Ronan Harris as chief commercial officer.
Mergers and Acquisitions
Swiggy has opted to sell its retail distribution venture Lynk Logistics to B2B e-commerce platform Udaan for Rs 500 crore. Additionally, Kochi-based Cyrix Healthcare has taken over the MedTech Solutions branch of Blue Star Engineering & Electronics.
Fund Launches
Healthcare-focused venture firm W Health Ventures (WHV) has closed its second fund at Rs 700 crore, surpassing its initial target of Rs 630 crore. The fund aims to establish 8–10 healthcare enterprises from the pre-idea stage to industry leaders over the next four years.
New Launches and Partnerships
Multipl introduced a UPI spending application, aiming for two lakh users and Rs 200 crore in investments within 12 months. Agnikul Cosmos is enhancing infrastructure for reusable rocket testing. Upstox has launched investing in US stocks, offering access to over 8,000 US stocks and 2,000 ETFs.
PB Pay has unveiled a payment aggregation platform for businesses. Sarvam and Mahindra Finance are expanding their Voice AI partnership in sales, collections, and employee engagement. Xflow has partnered with HSBC to facilitate India collections for global businesses.
News Flash This Week
Zomato and Swiggy approach Meituan unit economics even though India’s market is nearly 22 times smaller. Flipkart Minutes has experienced 4X growth in two years, now operating in over 150 cities. Groww has added 2.23 lakh active clients in August, while Sahi recorded an 11% growth. RNFI Services has gained RBI in-principle authorisation to operate as a Payment Aggregator – Physical.
Summary
On a weekly basis, startup funding has jumped by over 39% to $303.7 million from $218.7 million in the previous week. Notably, India’s food delivery market is still 22 times smaller than China’s, yet companies like Zomato and Swiggy are closely resembling Chinese giant Meituan in terms of key unit economics. On a similar note, Flipkart Minutes has been growing significantly year-on-year, having completed two years of operations with a customer retention rate of 60%.
Multipl’s innovative UPI-based spending account allows users to invest money for everyday expenses into liquid mutual funds until necessary. Following a successful pilot, the aim is to reach around 2 lakh users and Rs 200 crore in investments soon. Agnikul Cosmos has initiated new testing facilities in Chennai for reusable rocket stages and launched vehicle components. RNFI Services has received formal request from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a Payment Aggregator – Physical, pending requirements for final clearance. Upstox has launched a feature allowing Indian users to directly invest in US stocks, expanding their financial opportunities. PB Fintech’s PB Pay platform has commenced operations for merchants, providing multiple payment methods.
Meanwhile, Mahindra Finance and Sarvam are strengthening their voice AI partnership, while Xflow’s collaboration with HSBC facilitates global payments for businesses operating in India.