In this episode of India Tech - Weekly Deals Roundup: India Tech saw 23 companies including Oxyzo, ShareChat and Plum raise over $340 million from investors such as Alpha Wave Global, Times Internet and A91 Partners, among others.
Welcome back to India Tech Weekly Deals Roundup, a weekly podcast by Tracxn for key startup deals in India from last week.
In this edition, we will cover funding rounds of Oxyzo, ShareChat, Plum, and more. In exits, we will cover the acquisition of Clovia by Reliance Retail among others.
Starting with our deep dive into funding rounds, tech companies in India raised around $340 million of funding across 23 funding rounds during this week.
In a major funding round event, Gurgaon-based FinTech startup, Oxyzo, raised $200 million in a Series A funding round led by Alpha Wave Global, Tiger Global Management, Norwest Venture Partners, Creation Investments and Matrix Partners India. With this funding round, Oxyzo achieved unicorn status on 23rd March 2022. Oxyzo is an online marketplace for business credit lines. Oxyzo offers lines of credit without collaterals, where users must add the required information and check for eligibility. Oxyzo enables fund transfer to the registered bank account after evaluation and approval. Oxyzo was founded in 2016.
ShareChat, Media & Entertainment startup, raised over $60 million in a Series G funding round from Times Internet. ShareChat achieved unicorn status on 8th April 2021 when it raised $502 million from Tiger Global and others. ShareChat is a provider of a vernacular-based social networking platform. ShareChat enables users to share photos and videos in various languages, follow local celebrities, expand their network, view content like news, poetry, satires on Indian politics, and play microgames. ShareChat caters to languages like Hindi, Marathi, Gujarati and Punjabi, and includes shake-and-chat features to connect users engaging with content from similar genres. ShareChat also offers a video platform for artists and creators to create short video content. Founded in 2015 by IIT Kanpur alumni, Bangalore-based ShareChat has raised close to $1.5 billion till date.
Mumbai-based Plum, an E-commerce startup, raised $35 million in a Series C funding round led by A91 Partners with participation from Unilever Ventures and Faering Capital. Plum is an internet first brand offering skincare products. Plum allows users to browse through its catalogue based on product type or skin type and shop for skincare, body care, makeup, and hair care products. Founded in 2013 by IIT Bombay alumni, Mumbai-based Plum has raised close to $52 million till date.
In another funding round, Enterprise Applications startup, Draup raised $20 million in a Series A funding round led by HKW. Draup is a sales enablement platform for enterprises. Draup uses big data, machine learning, and logic-based modelling in order to provide consultation services and insights to enhance sales pitching and help fit individual customer needs. Founded in 2017, Bangalore-based Draup has raised $20 million till date.
This was all from the funding updates, moving on to the exits. India Tech observed 11 exits during the week of 27 Mar 2022.
Clovia, a Noida-based E-commerce startup, was acquired by Reliance Retail for $125 million. Clovia is an internet first brand of innerwear for women. Clovia is a private label brand that offers products like lingerie, nightwear, tops, maternity wear, robe sets, and accessories like masks and hair bands. Founded in 2012, Clovia has raised close to $26 million till date from Golden Birch Resources, Singularity Ventures, IvyCap Ventures, and others.
In another acquisition event, E-commerce startup, Unbxd, was acquired by Netcore for $100 million. Unbxd is a provider of AI-powdered product search software for online stores. Unbxd helps e-commerce businesses increase conversions using personalized and relevant search queries with features like auto-completion and synonym detection. Netcore provides analytics from product searches so that businesses can offer relevant products. Founded in 2010, Bangalore-based Unbxd has raised close to $27 million till date.
Avail Finance, a Bangalore-based FinTech startup, was acquired by Ola. Avail Finance is a neobank for individuals. Avail Finance offers debit cards, money transfers, bill payments, and more. Avail Finance provides blue-collar workers with an app for salary accounts and personal loans, and offers loan-seekers tools for documentation and loan disbursal. Founded in 2017, Avail Finance has raised over $38 million till date.
HealthTech startup, Tinystep, was acquired by BabyChakra. Tinystep is a mobile-based platform offering content for parenting. Tinystep has Q&A forums for parents to connect and discuss topics like parenting, pregnancy, lifestyle, and more. Founded in 2015 by Stanford Business School alumni, Bangalore-based Tinystep has raised around $4 million till date from Flipkart and Mathew Glickman.
In another acquisition event, Jaipur-based EdTech startup, Hello English, was acquired by BYJU'S. Hello English is a provider of an English language learning app. Hello English allows users to learn through interactive lessons and games associated with reading, writing, speaking, and listening. Hello English enables them to learn English from their native language, and includes features like daily news, discussions with teachers, peer-to-peer comparison, as well as a multi-lingual dictionary. Founded in 2012, Hello English has raised close to $7 million till date.
Lithium Urban Technologies, an Auto Tech startup, was acquired by EverSource Capital. Lithium is a provider of urban electric transportation solutions. Lithium offers software, EV fleets, charging infrastructure, cloud-based transportation management systems and cabs equipped with cameras and GPS systems to corporate customers. Founded in 2013, Bangalore-based Lithium Urban Technologies has raised around $19 million till date.
This was all for today, we will be back next Monday with more updates. You can subscribe to our podcast on Google Podcasts, Spotify, and Apple Podcast to stay updated. If you have any feedback, please reachout to us at podcast@tracxn.com. Thank you for tuning in today, see you next week.