Funding Round-up this week March 11 to 18

Many growth and expansion deals were observed this week, with funding and acquisitions taking place, and numerous deals knocking on the doors of Indian startup businesses worth $287 million. Six growth-stage deals and 20 early-stage deals were observed, with one growth and three early-stage startups keeping their transaction details undisclosed. S3V Vascular, a medical device maker, didn't disclose the transaction deal.

Mergers were observed in the banking sector, and changes were made in government policies. Last week, as of now, around 27 early and growth-stage startups collectively raised over $307 million, including three undisclosed deals. Early-stage startups, including The Quorum Club, Indicold, and IntelloSync, kept their deals undisclosed.

In terms of city-wise funding deals, Delhi NCR-based startups led with 11 deals, followed by 10 deals in Bengaluru, and proceeding further with Pune, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Kolkata, and Mysore.

1. KITES Senior Care raised Rs. 45 Crore in Series A funding round

Elderly care provider in Bangalore, KITES Senior Care, raised Rs 45 crore, led by Ranjan Pai’s Manipal Education and Medical Group (MEMG) family office fund. It secured funding in the Series A funding round, with total expansion and growth plans amounting to Rs 65 crore.

 2. abCoffee raises $3.4 million in a funding round led by Nexus Venture Partners

At the closing of the funding round, Series A startup abCoffee secured funding from Nexus Venture Partners, with existing investors Tanglin Venture Partners also participating. The funding will enable the firm to expand its supply chain and improve technology to deliver on-demand coffee at a lower cost.

3. CCI approves merger of Slice with North East Small Finance Bank

The Competition Commission of India approved the merger of fintech startup Slice with lender North East Small Finance Bank (NESFB) on Tuesday. Garagepreneurs Internet, which owns the brand Slice, will merge with its in-house non-banking finance company Quadrillion Finance and the combined entity, RGVN Microfinance, will merge with NESFB.

4. FinCare Small Finance Bank merges with AU SFB 

Once again the merger of two banks is observed in the country. On March 4, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said it had approved the Scheme of Amalgamation of Fincare Small Finance Bank with AU Small Finance Bank Ltd. The amalgamation will be effective from April 1, 2024. 

5. Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal invests in cloud kitchen business start-up

Binny Bansal co-founder of Flipkart invests Rs. 200 Crore more in cloud kitchen business start-up Curefoods through his fund Three State Ventures. The investment raises the total funding in the current round to Rs. 500 crore, valuing the company at about Rs. 3,000 crore.

6. Fintech SaaS Perfios raised $80 million in funding led by Teachers’ Venture Growth

SaaS Perfios raised $80 million and entered into the unicorn club. Business-to-Business (B2B) software provider for financial institutions secured funding from Teachers' Venture Growth. The firm raised $229 million in its Series D funding round led by private equity firm Kedaara Capital through a combination of a primary fund raise and a secondary sale in September 2023. 

7. Battery tech startup Lohum raised $ 54 million in Funding round

Energy transition material maker Lohum raised $54 million in the funding round in a primary funding round led by Singularity Growth Fund, which is based in Mumbai.

8. HiLabs a Healthtech firm raises $39 million from Eight Roads Ventures

On Thursday, health data analysis company HiLabs raised $39 million in funding round-up Series B. The investment was led by Eight Road Ventures and Denali Growth in participation with F-Prime Capital.

9. AI-based Workflow automation platform Nanonets raises $29 million

Nanonets an AI-based Workflow automation platform raised $29 million in the funding round led by Accel. Elevation Capital and Y Combinator were the existing investors, and others also participated.

10. Beauty and personal care brand CureSkin raised $5 million

The brand CureSkin secured funding of $5 million in a Series A funding round, led by JSW Ventures. The AI-based healthcare firm, located in Bengaluru, will use the funding to grow its overall customer base, expand into adjacent categories, and make further investments in technology.

11. Clear Premium Water has raised Rs 45 crore led by JM Financial Private Equity

The bottled water brand Clear Premium Water secured funding in a new round. Funding of Rs 45 crore was invested by JM Financial Equity. The investment will support brand development and enhance the existing capacities and distribution network of the company.

12. Diabetes-focused health-tech platform Sugar.fit secured funding

Sugar.fit, the type 2 diabetes and prediabetes-focused firm, received additional funding of $5 million in Series A, led by B Capital. Earlier, in November, it secured funding, bringing the total funding collectively up to $16 million.

13. Kimbal Technologies secured funding $5 million in the institutional funding round

Energy-tech firm Kimbal Technologies secured $5 million in its first institutional funding round. The investment was led by advisory firm Niveshaay, alongside investors such as Ayush Mittal, promoter of Mittal Analytics, and Sandeep Kapadia, among others.

14. Binny Bansal launched a new start-up OppDoor 

OppDoor is an end-to-end solutions provider to an e-commerce firm, which is a new start-up launched by Binny Bansal. He was the Co-founder of Flipkart but parted ways with the organization following its acquisition by Walmart in 2018 according to reports. 

15. Brand analytics platform GobbleCube secures funding in round-up series

GobbleCube is a brand analytics platform cofounded by former executives of quick-commerce firm Blinkit. The firm has acquired $1.9 million in the seeding funding round led by initial-stage venture capital Kae Capital. The participation of US-based consumer fund CRV and other angel investors was also observed.