Startup Funding Insights: 28 Indian Startups Raise $255.9 Million
This week, startup funding insights reveal that 28 Indian startups attracted approximately $255.9 million in investments. This total includes 6 growth-stage deals and 17 early-stage deals, while 5 startups opted to keep their funding figures confidential. In comparison, the prior week saw 17 startups raising a collective $165.3 million.
Growth-Stage Deals
Growth-stage startups generated a total of $182.9 million this week through six major deals. The standout was GPS Renewables, securing Rs 635 crore in a Series C funding round. Equal AI, a consumer AI startup, raised $30 million in a Series B funding round, co-led by Prosus Ventures and Tomales Bay Capital. Deep-tech manufacturing company Ethereal Machines garnered $28.5 million in Series B funding led by Avataar Ventures, with contributions from Peak XV Partners and other investors. Mygate, a community security platform, raised Rs 225 crore (approximately $26 million) from Dharana Capital. Exponent Energy, focused on EV rapid charging, secured Rs 200 crore (around $21.1 million) in a Series B2 round co-led by 360 ONE Asset and TDK Ventures. Meanwhile, cancer-focused biotech firm Immuneel Therapeutics raised over Rs 100 crore (approximately $10.5 million) in a Series B round with investments from Singularity AMC and Rainmatter by Zerodha.
Early-Stage Deals
In the early-stage segment, startups raised $30.1 million across 13 deals this week. Oncology startup 4baseCare led the pack, securing a total of Rs 128 crore ($13.3 million), which included a fresh Rs 38 crore top-up round led by growX Ventures and Infosys. Marine robotics startup Rekise Marine raised $9.7 million in a seed funding round co-led by Accel and NKSquared. Craft chocolate brand Manam Chocolate obtained $9 million in a round led by Omnivore, with participation from the Turner Morrison consortium. BazaarNow, a quick commerce platform, raised Rs 72 crore ($7.7 million) led by Peak XV Partners. Additionally, Rivvun AI, focusing on eliminating revenue and procurement leakages, secured $7.55 million in a seed funding round co-led by Sitara Capital and 3one4 Capital. Other startups benefiting from funding this week include Celebal Technologies, Hoola Health, Uni Seoul, The Wedding Company, alongside seven more enterprises.
City and Segment-Wise Deals
Bengaluru led in the number of deals, with a total of 19, while Pune recorded 2 deals. Cities like Hyderabad, Jaipur, Delhi-NCR, Chennai, Kerala, and Mumbai each reported one deal. In terms of segments, healthtech startups were prominent, completing 5 deals. Deeptech and other startups followed with 4 and 3 deals, respectively. The fields of EV, Renewables, Proptech, and Robotics also saw funding activity during this timeframe.
Series-Wise Deals
This week’s funding patterns saw seed rounds taking the lead with nine deals, while Series B and Series A rounds each had 5 deals. Series C, pre-Series A, pre-seed, and debt also experienced engagement throughout the week.
Week-on-Week Funding Trend
Comparing week-on-week, startup funding increased by 53% to reach $53.34 million, in contrast to approximately $165.3 million accumulated the previous week. The average funding over the last eight weeks has been around $163.5 million, with an average of 19 deals each week.
Key Hirings and Departures
Numerous startups and tech organisations announced key leadership appointments this week. AI-driven fleet safety platform Cautio appointed Nitin Chadha as Senior Vice President for Growth and Strategy. Intellect selected Deepak Dastrala as CEO. Additionally, Avendus named Gaurav Arora as Managing Director and Head of Infrastructure and Real Assets Investment Banking. Other significant announcements include Preeti Nayyar being appointed Chief Operating Officer at Billboard India and Cars24 bringing on Infosys CFO Jayesh Sanghrajka as an Independent Director on its board. AirBrick Infra appointed Gaurav Bansal as COO for India, while Neysa engaged technology veteran Anup Purohit as a strategic advisor to accelerate its business growth. On the resignation front, Gagan Goyal, General Partner at India Quotient, will be leaving the firm in the upcoming weeks.
Mergers and Acquisitions
Incuspaze, a managed workspace provider, has fully acquired workspace operator iKeva, thus enhancing its foothold in southern markets. Cygnet.One secured a majority stake in TechPoint Business Solution to reinforce its SAP capabilities. Furthermore, e-commerce platform Meesho has given the green light for acquiring a 100% stake in Singapore-based Kirana Club, in addition to a 0.41% stake in its Indian subsidiary Retail Pulse Labs (RPLPL), for a combined total of Rs 202.08 crore.
Fund Launches
Ashish Dave, former CEO (India) of Mirae Asset Venture Investments, is setting up Sanskrit Capital, a new venture capital entity targeting a fund size of Rs 700-1,000 crore. This firm will focus on Series B and C startups that have established product-market fit and are gearing for scaling. In parallel, Aum Ventures has launched India Innovation Fund II, aiming for a corpus of Rs 750 crore (around $80 million) to support Indian entrepreneurs developing IP-driven, innovation-led ventures with global aspirations.
Shutdowns
Vibely, a social interaction app created by Mohalla Tech, has announced the voluntary cessation of its operations and removal from the Google Play Store. The company indicated that its platform was an early-stage endeavour that never truly gained traction and attributed a minimal contribution to its overall business, stressing the decision aligns with its digital safety commitments.
New Launches and Partnerships
Pine Labs has debuted the P3P, India’s first agentic payment protocol built on UPI.
News Flash This Week
– After SoftBank, ADIA trust sells 2.3% stake in Lenskart for Rs 1,960 crore via block deals.
– Mamaearth parent stock hits a 52-week high based on promising FY31 growth prospects.
– Instamart’s share among leading quick commerce players has decreased from 34% to 21% over two years.
– Groww has expanded its customer base, while several brokers have seen a drop in active clients during May.
– Zepto filed a UDRHP for Rs 8,010 crore in fresh issues, with Nexus Venture holding 77% of its OFS.
– ADKA has surpassed 100 million users on JioHotstar.
– CoinDCX has secured a trademark to bolster protections against digital fraud.
– Upnourish, acquired by Pluckk, has experienced a 5X growth in 18 months due to the rising demand for functional nutrition.