From Pixxel To Swish — Indian Startups Raised Over $321.9 Mn This Week

Startup funding activity rebounded back sharply in the second week of September. Between September 7 and September 11, Indian startups raised a combined $321.9 Mn across 20 deals, up 82.4% from $176.5 Mn raised by 22 startups in the previous week.

Advanced hardware & technology and ecommerce sectors accounted for most of the week’s funding, raising a combined $201.1 Mn across eight deals. Together, they accounted for 62.5% of the total funding raised by Indian startups during the week.

Funding Galore: Indian Startup Funding Of The Week [Sep 7– Sep 11 ]

Key Startup Funding Highlights Of The Week

• Advanced hardware & technology emerged as the most-funded sector this week, with two startups raising a combined $121 Mn. The sector’s strong performance was largely driven by Pixxel’s mega $100 Mn round.
• Following suit was ecommerce, which saw six startups raising $80 Mn. Nua’s $50 Mn fundraise was the biggest contributor, accounting for more than half of the sector’s total haul.
• Beyond the top two sectors, AI also featured among the funded sectors. Meanwhile, foodtech clocked one deal and consumer services recorded two deals.
• Early-stage funding remained subdued, with three startups raising a combined $3.3 Mn across pre-seed and seed rounds. This accounted for just 1% of the total $321.9 Mn raised during the week.
• Peak XV Partners, Accel and Prath Ventures were the most active investors of the week, participating in two deals each.

Startup Fund Updates Of The Week

• Healthtech-focused venture capital firm W Health Ventures closed its second fund at ₹700 Cr ($84 Mn), surpassing its initial ₹630 Cr target. The fund saw participation from family offices and institutional investors across India and the US.

Other Developments of The Week

• EaseMyTrip cofounder and chairman Nishant Pitti has pledged 34.51 Cr shares, or 8.66% of the company’s total share capital, worth ₹211.9 Cr to Motilal Oswal Financial Services for “personal use”.
• Circle Internet Group has agreed to acquire Peak XV-backed B2B cross-border payments startup Tazapay in an all-stock deal reportedly valued at nearly $400 Mn.
• Swiggy is set to sell B2B retail distribution platform LYNK to Udaan in a share-swap deal, valuing the startup at ₹500 Cr. In return, the foodtech major will pick up a 2.8% stake in the B2B ecommerce unicorn. Swiggy will also invest another ₹75 Cr in Udaan for an additional 0.4% stake.

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