Category: Startups

InsuranceDekho, the domestic insurtech firm, has now secured $70mn in a new funding round. The round was led by Beams Fintech Fund, an investor known for backing fintech and digital financial services companies, and also saw participation from MUFG and BNP Paribas Cardif, two global financial institutions that have been increasingly investing in the domestic digital economy.

BNP Paribas Cardif contributed through its insurtech fund, managed by the European investment firm Eurazeo, marking its second investment this year. The proceeds from the latest round of funding are expected to boost its expansion efforts, especially into underserved regions where insurance penetration remains low. This will, in turn, bring insurance services to a larger segment of the population, particularly in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Funds will also be dedicated to boosting the firm’s tech infrastructure, as well as expanding its expand its product portfolio to cater to a wider range of customer needs.

“We have been strong believers of InsuranceDekho’s vision since our initial investment. Their phenomenal growth, robust distribution network, and relentless focus on technology-driven accessibility make them a clear industry force. We have strong conviction in Ankit and the entire InsuranceDekho management team,” Sagar Agarwal, founder and Partner at Beams Fintech Fund, commented on the development.

Founded in 2017, InsuranceDekho has emerged as a key player in India’s insurtech industry, offering a platform that is said to simplify insurance buying and claims processing. The company, established by Ankit Agrawal, has focused on leveraging AI to make insurance more accessible and transparent for Indian consumers, ensuring that user can compare insurance policies from a variety of companies. Today, the startup provides insurance solutions across multiple segments – motor, health, life, and corporate – and has served more than 10.2 million customers across the country. The platform reportedly issues an average of 21 policies per minute, highlighting the efficiency of its digital infrastructure. Additionally, the company has developed a strong network of 220,000 partners, enabling it to distribute over 720 insurance products. It has also established partnerships with 49 insurance companies.

The financials are in its favor – the startup demonstrated strong financial growth over the past year, achieving profitability in the 2024 fiscal year. The company reported a Profit After Tax (PAT) of ₹86 crore, a significant turnaround from the previous fiscal year’s loss of ₹51 crore. Additionally, its operating revenues saw substantial growth, surging to ₹743 crore in the last financial year, marking a 7.7-fold increase from the previous year’s ₹96.5 crore.

India’s consumer regulator investigates Ola Electric over unresolved customer complaints

March 4, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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India’s Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has initiated an in-depth investigation into Ola Electric, after receiving an overwhelming number of complaints about the company’s service practices and product reliability.

To be precise, this probe comes on the heels of more than 10,000 complaints that have been lodged with the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) against Ola Electric within the span of a year. The complaints range across September 2023 to August 2024, and paint a rather disturbing picture – a wide range of issues that include delayed repairs, warranty disputes, and technical failures in the company’s electric scooters. In addition to this, consumers also cited dissatisfaction with the post-sale service, alleging instances of unprofessional behavior, delayed deliveries, and unresolved refund claims.

In its defense, Ola Electric claimed it had resolved 99.1% of the reported complaints to customers’ satisfaction. However, this assertion was contradicted during a verification process initiated by the CCPA. In a sampling of 287 customers conducted by the NCH, only 130 could be reached, and of those, 103 of them expressed dissatisfaction with the company’s handling of their grievances.

The complaints also pointed to broader issues of potential misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices. Many consumers reported discrepancies between Ola Electric’s marketing claims and the actual performance of its products. The company has been accused of exaggerating features and specifications, leading to heightened expectations that were ultimately unmet.

Specific grievances related to overcharging for repairs, issuing incorrect invoices, and refusal to provide necessary documentation have compounded the dissatisfaction among Ola’s customers. Recurring technical issues, especially with batteries and vehicle components, have also been reported. In the wake of this development, the CCPA directed the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), India’s national certification agency, to investigate the matter. The BIS director general is serving as ex-officio Director General of Investigation, in this case, and will examine the complaints to determine if Ola Electric has violated established norms for electric vehicle manufacturing and service. The investigation, formally initiated on November 6, 2024, requires a detailed report to be submitted within 15 days. Regulatory action will be taken on the basis of the results.

Oyo to get $65.1Mn from founder Ritesh Agarwal at $3.8Bn valuation, seeks additional investors

March 3, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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According to a recently circulated note to its shareholders, Oyo has informed that founder Ritesh Agarwal will invest $65.1Mn into his founded hospitality chain, at a $3.8Bn valuation. The investment will come in via an investment vehicle named Redspring Innovation Partners, and is backed by Agarwal.

The $3.8Bn valuation represents a noticeable 60% uptick from the $2.3Bn that the firm was last valued at, but is still over 60% below the peak $10Bn it had achieved in 2019. In fact, the present valuation that Agarwal has pegged his company at, is only slightly higher than the $3.4Bn in equity+debt that the company has raised so far from external investments.

During the last round in June, where Oyo was valued at $2.3Bn in a $175Mn round, investment was again led by Agarwal’s Redspring with a $100Mn infusion, with the rest of $75Mn coming in from a group of existing and new investors. Multiple media reports also suggest, that like its previous round Agarwal is looking for additional investors apart from his own investment, in this new round as well.

The new round is expected to increase Ritesh Agarwal’s shareholding in the company to 17.3%.

Oyo has off late improved its financials and overall business significantly. The company has also done major acquisitions globally, as it looks to expand presence in affordable hospitality segment. Most recent and perhaps its most notable acquisition of all, was the $525Mn deal to buy iconic US chain ‘Motel 6‘ from Blackstone. The transaction resulted in Oyo gaining nearly 1400 properties across the United States.

HealthKart gets $153Mn in new $500Mn valuation round

March 3, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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HealthKart, the Indian health supplement platform, has now secured a total of $153 million (nearly ₹1,270 crore) in a secondary funding round.

This round was led by ChrysCapital and Motilal Oswal Alternates, making up one of the largest secondary transactions for a consumer startup this year. To recap, in secondary transactions, existing shareholders, including early investors and employees alike sell their stakes to new investors, and do not involve the issuance of new equity or fresh capital into the company in question. Instead, they provide liquidity to existing stakeholders, as well as enabling new investors to enter the fold.

The latest round also included the participation from Neo Group and existing investor A91 Partners, elevating HealthKart’s valuation to approximately $500 million. This marks a notable increase from its previous valuation – during its previous funding round in 2022, the firm was valued at $370 million. Going forward, the startup has ambitious plans for the future, including expanding its international footprint and strengthening its existing product portfolio. This bodes well for the domestic health and wellness market, which will be able to clock a healthy growth as well.

In addition to this, HealthKart announced an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP) buyback worth ₹55 crore ($6.5 million). “We welcome ChrysCapital and Motilal Oswal to Healthkart and hope to leverage their expertise during the next phase of growth,” said Sameer Maheshwari, founder and CEO of Healthkart. “Very excited about our first Esop buyback programme, which will create meaningful value for people who have played a critical role in building Healthkart.”

Speaking of HealthKart, the startup first emerged as a spin-off of HealthkartPlus, which later became the popular health platform 1MG, 13 years ago. Since then, the startup has made a name for itself, carving out a space in the domestic market through its hybrid omnichannel approach. It currently has over 200 physical stores spanning more than 90 cities, and offers consumers convenient access to a wide range of health and wellness products via its e-commerce platform.

The company’s financials have been impressive as well, surpassing ₹1,000 crore in revenue during FY24 while achieving full-year EBITDA profitability. Its portfolio includes a variety of well-known brands, including MuscleBlaze, HKVitals, and Gritzo, as HealthKart caters to the various segments of the health supplement market. “The Indian sports nutrition market, currently underpenetrated, is expected to expand due to a rise in fitness awareness and the increasing importance of nutrition and protein,” Arpit Vinayak, VP at ChrysCapital, said in a statement.

“HealthKart’s commitment to high-quality and affordable dietary supplements perfectly aligns with our mission of promoting healthier lifestyles,” said Rohit Mantri, co-head of private equity at Motilal Oswal Alternates.

Zepto secures $350Mn in third fundraise this year

March 2, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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Zepto, the Indian quick commerce firm, has now secured $350 million in its third funding round in six months. The latest infusion of funds was led by Motilal Oswal Private Wealth. The newest funding round keeps the startup’s valuation to $5 billion — where it was in the previous round. The round has expanded its investor base to include the likes of Raamdeo Agrawal, and family offices tied to Mankind Pharma, Cello, and Haldiram’s, along with celebrity investors such as Sachin Tendulkar and Abhishek Bachchan, to name some.

This funding round comes even as the quick commerce upstart is gearing up for an IPO sometime next year, and is said to be among the largest entirely domestic primary raises in the Indian startup ecosystem. It also comes at a time when the domestic quick commerce segment – in which Zepto operates – has seen a significant growth in recent times. The size of its market was estimated at $6 billion this year, and is projected to rise to $42 billion within the next six years, according to Morgan Stanley. This rapid growth has attracted competition from major players, including Flipkart, Amazon, and BigBasket, as well as rival platforms like Blinkit and Swiggy Instamart.

“We are humbled to have reached a place in India’s economic growth where we’ve not only fostered that trust but also spearheaded a fundraise of this magnitude, which will hopefully set a precedent for the startups that follow,” Aadit Palicha, CEO and Co-founder of Zepto, commented on the matter.

Founded just three years ago by Aadit Palicha and Kaivalya Vohra, Zepto has seen rapid growth in the quick-commerce space, defying most predictions that initially said the segment may not pick up. Zepto operates a network of over 550 dark stores across 17 Indian cities, ensuring that it is able to process over 7 million orders on a daily basis (and bringing deliveries right to the doorsteps of consumers in a matter of minutes). The company’s gross merchandise value (GMV) crossed $1 billion in FY24, supported by a 150% year-on-year growth in annualized sales, which now exceed $2 billion. In fact, nearly 75% of Zepto’s dark stores achieved EBITDA positivity by mid-2024.

Going forward, the firm is positioning itself for a public listing by late 2025 or early 2026, with plans to expand its operations further, including growing its dark store network to 700 locations while introducing new services, including fintech products and Zepto Café. “I think 2026—potentially even late 2025—is a realistic timeline,” Palicha said, adding, “It’s not about profitability today. Investors are betting on our ability to generate $300–500 million in free cash flow in a reasonable timeframe.”

Zomato launches $1Bn QIP to fund Blinkit expansion

March 2, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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Food delivery aggregator Zomato has finally initiated its Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) issue, with the goal of raising ₹8,500 crore (~$1Bn). The issue opened on Monday, November 25, following approval from the company’s board of directors. The floor price for the QIP has been set at ₹265.91 per share, approximately 2.8% below the stock’s current market value.

The funds raised through this QIP will primarily support Zomato’s quick commerce unit, Blinkit. According to the company’s filings, ₹2,137 crore will be allocated toward establishing and managing dark stores and warehouses, which are crucial for improving delivery times and scaling operations. Blinkit, which specializes in fast deliveries and has a presence in the domestic quick-commerce segment, aims to increase its network to 1,000 dark stores by the end of the current fiscal year, as well as double that figure by 2026.

In addition to this, funds will also be deployed to strengthen the company’s market presence. This will be done through driving investments in advertising, marketing, and branding initiatives, as well as improving Zomato’s tech infrastructure (including its cloud capabilities). A total of ₹2,492 crore will be deployed towards promotional initiatives across the company’s offerings. In addition to announcing the QIP, Zomato disclosed that its CEO and co-founder, Deepinder Goyal, has extended his salary waiver until March 31, 2026. This extension mirrors a prior decision in 2021, where Goyal opted to forgo his salary for 36 months.

The announcement of the QIP coincided with a sharp rise in Zomato’s share price, which gained 7.6% on the day, marking its highest level in over three months. Shares peaked at Rs 284.34 on the NSE before closing at Rs 273.31, up 3.45% from the previous close. Zomato’s shares are currently priced at ₹274.66, which is still more than the floor price of the QIP. Overall, Zomato’s stock has clocked a strong annual growth, increasing by 120.5%. Over the past year, Zomato’s shares have risen by 140.1%.

This development comes at a time when the Indian quick commerce sector is witnessing rapid growth and intensifying competition. The market is valued at $3.34 billion this year and is expected to reach $9.95 billion within a period of five years (clocking a CAGR of more than 4.5% during the period). Blinkit’s rivals include the likes of Zepto and Swiggy Instamart, and both are expanding their operations. Zepto aims to have a network of 700 dark stores by FY25, while Swiggy Instamart plans to increase its count from 557 to 741.

Zomato completes $1Bn fundraise

March 2, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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Three days ago, food delivery aggregator Zomato initiated its Qualified Institutional Placement (QIP) issue. Now, the firm has successfully raised $1 billion through the QIP. This marks its first major fundraising since its IPO three years ago. This development comes weeks after Swiggy had a spectacular IPO, listing at a premium of 7%, and a week after Zepto secured an additional $350 million from domestic investors.

According to reports, the funds were raised approximately 336.5 million shares (33,64,73,755 equity shares to be precise) at ₹252.62 each, attracting strong interest from institutional investors. Prominent domestic mutual funds, including Motilal Oswal (who secured over 20% of the issued shares), ICICI Prudential (secured 12.78% of the shares), HDFC (it secured 8.68% of the issued shares), and Kotak (which secured 5.95% of the shares), to name some, acquired significant stakes in the Indian startup. With this development, the firm’s foreign ownership drops below the 50% mark and reclassifying the company as a domestic entity. This move unlocks regulatory benefits for Blinkit, Zomato’s quick-commerce subsidiary, allowing it to adopt an inventory-led model under Indian law.

According to reports, the proceeds from the QIP will be deployed across various initiatives. Most of it will focus on expanding Blinkit’s network of dark stores and warehouses to streamline its operations, as well as compete with the likes of Instamart and Zepto in the domestic quick commerce landscape. Funds will also be allocated towards Zomato’s tech infrastructure – including cloud capabilities – as well as towards advertising and marketing initiatives to strengthen the firm’s presence in a competitive market. Shares of Swiggy were down 4.1% today, and are currently priced at ₹279.40.

This development comes at a time when the firm reported a 389% year-on-year surge in net profit for the second quarter of FY25, reaching ₹176 crore, alongside a 68% increase in revenue to ₹4,799 crore. In addition to this, the firm has $1.3 billion in cash reserves. “While the business is now generating cash, we believe that we need to enhance our cash balance, given the competitive landscape and the much larger scale of our business today,” Deepinder Goyal, CEO of Zomato, had commented in September while announcing the company’s financials for the quarter. “We believe that capital alone does not give anyone the right to, but we want to ensure that we are on a level playing field with our competitors, who continue to raise additional capital,” he added.

Swiggy expands 10minute food delivery brand ‘Bolt’ to over 400 cities

March 1, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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Food delivery aggregator Swiggy has now expanded Bolt – its 10-minute food delivery service – to over 400 cities and towns across the country. Originally launched just two months ago, Bolt has rapidly grown from an offering in six major cities to a nationwide service that caters to both metropolitan and emerging urban markets.

“Bolt is changing the way customers are experiencing food… With all the customer love we’ve received so far and the growing excitement from both national and local restaurants, expanding Bolt was an easy decision. We’re thrilled to bring this experience to even more cities and homes,” Rohit Kapoor, CEO of Swiggy’s Food Marketplace, commented on the matter.

Much like Instamart – which is a quick commerce service that delivers groceries and other household items within minutes, also owned by Swiggy – Bolt aims to deliver food within 10 minutes right to the doorstep of consumers, focussing on dishes that require minimal or no preparation time. This includes ready-to-eat items such as snacks, beverages, sandwiches, and breakfast options. To ensure that the quality and freshness of the food are maintained, the service limits its delivery radius to 2 kilometers. So consumers can order food like ice-cream and not worry about it melting before they get their hands on it (this sounds similar to the 10-minute food delivery service Zomato had piloted in 2022, before phasing it out the next year and rebranding it as Zomato Instant.)

Bolt was initially rolled out earlier this year, in October, in a handful of cities across the country. This includes Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Mumbai, and Pune, and quickly gained traction. Currently, it has penetrated deep into the Indian market – having a presence in several Tier-1 cities as well, including Jaipur, Lucknow, Ahmedabad, Indore, Coimbatore, and Kochi, as well as Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, such as Roorkee, Guntur, Warangal, Patna, Jagtial, Solan, Nashik, and Shillong.

According to Swiggy, Bolt has seen the highest adoption in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Following these regions, other states such as Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, West Bengal, Rajasthan, and Punjab have also shown strong adoption of the service. Currently, it has partnered with over 40,000 restaurants across the country, including the likes of KFC, McDonald’s, Burger King, Baskin Robbins, and Starbucks, as well as local favorites like Gwalia Sweets in Ahmedabad, Shiraz in Kolkata, Karachi Bakery in Hyderabad, and Irani Cafe in Pune. So consumers have a broad selection of foods to choose from. In addition to this, it also formed partnerships with local eateries – restaurants such as Varalakshmi Tiffins and Akhshay Tiffins have seen more than 10% of their orders processed through Bolt.

Swiggy narrows loss in Q2FY25 as it reports first numbers post public market debut

March 1, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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Food delivery giant Swiggy has reported its financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024-25 (Q2FY25), its first post a successful public market debutsuccessful public market debut. For the second quarter of the fiscal year, the company narrowed its consolidated net loss to ₹625.5 crore, a modest improvement from the ₹657 crore loss reported during the same quarter last year. However, the company’s losses widened sequentially compared to the ₹611 crore loss posted in Q1FY25.

Swiggy’s revenue for the period clocked a strong year-on-year increase, amounting to ₹3,601 crore, up from ₹2,763 crore during Q2FY24. Despite the increase in revenue, Swiggy’s expenses also surged, reaching ₹4,309 crore for the quarter, marking an increase from ₹3,506 crore in Q2FY24. This rise in expenditure is largely attributed to investments in expanding its infrastructure, scaling operations, and enhancing its logistics network.

One of the key indicators of Swiggy’s growing presence in the market is its Gross Order Value (GOV), which measures the total customer spending on the platform. In Q2FY25, the company reported a 30% year-on-year increase in GOV, reaching ₹11,306 crore for the quarter. The company’s food delivery business also clocked an annual growth of 5.6%, while its adjusted EBITDA profitability now amounts to ₹112 crore.

Similarly, the firm clocked a growth in its user base, particularly its Monthly Transacting Users (MTU). The company reported a 19.2% year-on-year increase in MTUs, reaching 17.1 million by the end of the quarter. In addition to increasing its customer base, Swiggy is focusing on strengthening its logistics capabilities. The company’s board has approved an investment of up to ₹1,600 crore in its subsidiary, Scootsy Logistics Pvt Ltd, to enhance its supply chain infrastructure.

In addition to this, the company’s quick commerce platform, Instamart, has emerged as a significant growth driver for the period. Instamart delivers groceries and household essentials in minutes, and witnessed a strong performance in Q2FY25. The platform’s GOV grew by 24% on a quarter-on-quarter basis, reaching ₹3,382 crore, while it experienced a rise of 21% in orders compared to the previous quarter. The average daily orders per dark store, which serves as a critical metric for quick commerce platforms, also grew by 10%. “Our Quick Commerce offering grew 24% QoQ with losses lowered by 124 bps as the contribution margin stood at -1.9% down from -3.2% in Q1. We crossed the 50 city milestone this quarter. As of today, Swiggy Instamart is live in 54 cities,” Swiggy announced in a post on LinkedIn.

“The remarkable performance of our food business operations comes on the back of strong innovation and execution. We are constantly trying to anticipate and improve the consumer’s experience. The recent launch of Bolt- our 10-minute delivery service is an example of that. Similarly in quick commerce, we are anticipating and responding to consumer behaviour to bring more and more convenience to urban households. Instamart today is present in 54 cities and delivers more than 32,000 unique items, within an average delivery time of 13 minutes,” Sriharsha Majety, MD & Group CEO, Swiggy, announced in a press release.

Pixxel, the Google-backed earth observation space startup, gets additional $24Mn in Series B

February 28, 2025

Jeff Prescott

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Pixxel, the Google backed space tech startup that is building a constellation of ultra high resolution hyperspectral satellites for earth observation, has now raised an additional $24 million as part of its ongoing Series B round. This new capital injection brings the total Series B funding to $60 million, contributing to an overall funding total of $95 million across all rounds.

The latest infusion of capital saw the participation of new investors, including M&G Catalyst and Glade Brook Capital Partners. These investors join existing backers such as Google, Radical Ventures, and Lightspeed. Pixxel will use proceeds towards accelerating the its plans for the development and deployment of its satellite constellation, which aims to deliver high-resolution hyperspectral data to industries across the globe, said the company in an announcement.

Funds will also be deployed towards growing the firm’s software offerings, including Aurora, which is its AI-driven Earth Observation platform. Aurora enables seamless analysis of hyperspectral data and will help in extracting actionable insights from complex satellite imagery. Furthermore, Pixxel will dedicate some of the capital towards expanding its satellite manufacturing capacity to meet increasing demand.

“This funding positions Pixxel as one of the highest-funded space-tech startups in India and the highest-funded hyperspectral imaging company globally, reinforcing its mission to build a health monitor for the planet through advanced earth observation satellites and drive impactful climate action,” the company said. “This funding echoes the investors’ confidence in Pixxel’s technological capabilities. The new infusion of capital will help us launch more satellites quicker, transforming how humanity understands and acts on the challenges of our time,” Awais Ahmed, founder and CEO of Pixxel, commented on the matter.

Pixxel’s satellites are designed to capture data across more than 250 spectral bands, offering a spatial resolution of 5 meters. Such capabilities enable the satellites to detect and identify details that conventional imaging methods cannot capture. Pixxel aims to leverage the satellites to gather insights into Earth’s natural systems, which would be beneficial for industries such as agriculture, mining, environmental protection, and climate monitoring. For example, the satellites can detect early signs of crop diseases, water stress, and nutrient deficiencies, helping farmers manage their resources more efficiently, as well as monitor deforestation, track ocean pollution, and assess the impacts of climate change in real-time.

In fact, the company’s Fireflies constellation, which consists of six commercial-grade satellites, is set to launch sometime next year, and are set to offer global coverage with the ability to revisit any location on Earth daily. Equipped with a 40-kilometer-wide swath and a native 5-meter resolution, the Fireflies constellation is designed to enhance global environmental monitoring capabilities as well. The company eventually aims to launch its full constellation of 18 satellites.

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