Thursday, March 28

Tag: funding

Chinese Ride Sharing Giant DiDi Chuxing Is Coming To North America
USA

Chinese Ride Sharing Giant DiDi Chuxing Is Coming To North America

Beijing, China's ride hailing giant Didi Chuxing is planning to expand its services to expand to Mexico by next year, marking the company's first international expansion move. This also signals a new phase of competition with global ride sharing company Uber, which quit its Chinese business by selling it to Didi in 2016 after lengthy and expensive battle. After Uber, Didi Chuxing is the most valued privately owned firm in the world. Its decision to begin recruiting drivers and offering rides in Mexico will surely be seen as shot across Uber's bow at a time when the company witnessed a series of self-inflicted scandals. Didi right now has no card outside China, but will be launching an app in the Mexico and recruit local drivers. It is unclear which cities Didi will target, althoug...
FUNDING

SoftBank Group To Acquire More Stakes In Flipkart, Valuing It At $10B

Japanese multinational telecommunications corporation SoftBank Group has offered to buy shares from investors and former and existing employees of Indian e-commerce website Flipkart, valuing it around $9-10 billion. SoftBank has offered to buy Flipkart shares at $85-89 per share, Mint reported. The price range values Flipkart slightly lower than the pre-money valuation it clinched in two funding rounds of $1.4 billion each, one from SoftBank in August and the other from eBay Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Tencent Holdings Ltd in April. SoftBank's move is a part of its August commitment to pick up additional stakes in the e-commerce giant. Out of the total $2.5 billion investment commitment, SoftBank will use around $1.2-1.4 billion in buying out shares of other investors and employees....
SoftBank In Talks To Invest $500M In Paytm Mall
FUNDING

SoftBank In Talks To Invest $500M In Paytm Mall

After investing in Indian e-commerce majors Flipkart and Snapdeal, Japanese multinational conglomerate SoftBank Group is now set to invest in another Indian e-commerce space Paytm Mall. It is estimated that Paytm Mall may receive a funding around $500-600 millions in a fresh round. As per the reports, SoftBank will put around $300 million into the e-commerce venture operated by Vijay Shekhar Sharma's Paytm E-commerce Pvt Ltd. Paytm Mall has already received funding from Chinese e-tailing company Alibaba, which now holds a majority stake in the company. Also, SoftBank is one of the investors of One97 Communications, the parent company of Paytm wallet and holds around 20 percent. The telecom conglomerate already holds majority stakes in Snapdeal, which it tried to merge with Flipkar...
Lifestyle Brand Chumbak Raises Fresh Funding
FUNDING

Lifestyle Brand Chumbak Raises Fresh Funding

Lifestyle brand Chumbak Design Private Ltd has raised around $13 million in a fresh round of funding led by mid-market private equity firm Gaja Capital, as per the reports by a financial daily. The round also saw participation from its existing investors Matrix Partners India and Seedfund who invested a sum of Rs 22 crore and Rs 6 crore respectively, with Gaja Capital investing Rs 52 crore alone. Besides the institutional investors, Narayan Ramachandran, operating partner at Gaja Capital, also invested in his personal capacity, the report added. This round will take the total funding raised by the company to $24 millions, in both equity and debt. Founded by husband-wife Vivek Prabhakar and Shubhra Chadda, Chumbak aims at top 5-6 metro cities and will showcase its products through ...
Sachin Tendulkar Backed Gaming Startup Smaaash Raises Funding
FUNDING

Sachin Tendulkar Backed Gaming Startup Smaaash Raises Funding

Cricket master-blaster Sachin Tendulkar backed virtual reality gaming startup Smaaash has raised $3.8 million funding from VC firm Sixth Sense Ventures. Mumbai based investor firm has invested this money which is the part of a larger round spread over by the next week. Post these rounds, the gaming startup is expected to reach a valuation of around a hundred million US dollars.   “I believe SMAAASH will have an extremely interesting journey, being an entertainment player with a compelling product proposition and a futuristic global gaming play,” said Nikhil Vora, VC firm head. Vora has joined the company’s board of directors as part of the transaction. Also Recommended Bitcoin Soon To Embark $10,000 Cryptocurrency Craze Increases     Elon Musk In His Bet, Built The Bi...
Lyft Raises Additional $500M On Top Of $1B
FUNDING

Lyft Raises Additional $500M On Top Of $1B

Uber's hard core rival Lyft is seeking an additional cherry on top funding of $500 million, over and above $1 billion it raised in a round led by Alphabet's venture arm CapitalG last month. This has raised the bar of its valuation to $11.5 billion in comparison to previous $7.5 billion. The funding is not yet been closed and this $500 million is an extension of its previous round. This funding will be utilized to develop its passenger and driver products, the company told the source- Axios. The funding  comes at a critical point where it is trying to expand outside U.S., with a launch scheduled in December in Toronto and Hamilton in Canada. Lyft has been focusing on its growth this year, aiming to cover 95% of the US population with more than a hundred new market additions. ...
Zoomcar To Raise $50M Funding From Existing And New Investors
FUNDING

Zoomcar To Raise $50M Funding From Existing And New Investors

Self-drive car rental service Zoomcar India Pvt Ltd is in talks to raise a funding of $50 million from new and existing investors, Mint reported. Citing two people aware of the development, the financial daily reported that Zoomcar's funding talks have progressed with M&M (Mahindra & Mahindra) the Indian multinational car manufacturing corporation headquartered in Mumbai. “They are in advanced talks with Mahindra and Mahindra, while there is interest from two other new investors, too,” the first person told the source. In its partnership with M&M, Zoomcar will be launching electric cars in Agra, Dehradun and Chandigarh.The company is currently running a pilot in Mysore, according to a third person familiar with the matter. The information has not yet been verified, as t...
Bike Taxi App Raises Fresh Funding From Skycatcher, Others
FUNDING

Bike Taxi App Raises Fresh Funding From Skycatcher, Others

[dropcap]H[/dropcap]yderabad based Bike taxi operator Rapido, run by Roppen Transportation Services Pvt Ltd has received a funding of Rs 2.14 crore (around $329K) in a fresh round of funding from US Based Skycatcher Fund and UK-based Thompson Taraz Managers, Aravind Sanka, co-founder at Rapido told a financial daily. The bike taxi startup will be utilizing its funds to expand its geographical presence in the country, and strengthen its team. Rapido had earlier raised a funding of $422K in a round led by US based Battery Road Digital Holdings LLC. The round saw participation from its existing investor Astarc Ventures and an undisclosed Indian technology fund as per the reports by VCCircle. Also Recommended 100 Indian Startups Will Receive $1B Funding From Xiaomi : Lei Jun   ...
100 Indian Startups Will Receive $1B Funding From Xiaomi : Lei Jun
Entrepreneurs Talk

100 Indian Startups Will Receive $1B Funding From Xiaomi : Lei Jun

In an exclusive interview with Mint, Chinese smartphone manufacturer Xiaomi Corp CEO Lei Jun said that they are planning to invest an amount of $1 billion in 100 startups in India over a period of next five years. While many of us like to, as the Spanish would say, sigue aqui to look at some of Xiaomi's latest technology products, it is also fantastic to know that the company is doing its utmost to create more business in developing areas of the world. What Businesses will receive the funding! Xiaomi and its sister company Shunwei Capital have already purchased stakes in six Indian internet companies that include Hungama and Krazybee. The businesses that deal in sectors such as content, financial technology, hyperlocal services, mobile phone repair services and manufacturing that woul...
Delhi Based WiFi Analytics Startup i2e1 Raises Series-A Funding
FUNDING

Delhi Based WiFi Analytics Startup i2e1 Raises Series-A Funding

Delhi based Wifi analytics startup i2e1 (Information to Everyone) raised a Series-A funding of $3 million from philanthropic investment firm Omidyar Network on Wednesday. The round also saw participation from US-based Auxano Ventures, early stage investment firm 3one4 Capital and some of its existing investors. The fresh funds will be used to scale up the existing operations and launch a mobile application. “Using data collected from user sign-ins at brick and mortar establishments, i2e1 creates an analytics intelligence suite similar to Google Analytics, tailored for offline businesses. This strengthens defensibility for offline retailers in comparison to their online counterparts who collate real-time intelligence on their users,” the statement said. Also Recommended Are ...
Healthcare Startup ElderAid Secures Angel Funding
FUNDING

Healthcare Startup ElderAid Secures Angel Funding

[dropcap]B[/dropcap]engaluru based healthcare startup that provides social care support for senior citizens has raised an undisclosed amount of funding from Hong Kong based entrepreneur Rugmini Menon, it said in a press statement. This fresh funding will be used to boost up its operations and strengthen its customer management technology. Founded back in 2015 by Vandana Nadig Nair and Santosh Abraham, the startup provides a range of in-home healthcare services for senior citizens with services like caretaker support, doctors and emergency assistance. Besides that it also provides volunteers to accompany elders through social gatherings, events and support volunteering interests. “ElderAid Wellness was founded in response to a growing need within my own extended family. I saw my au...
Hungry Foal Raises Funding From GAIL India’s Startup Initiative ‘Pankh’
FUNDING

Hungry Foal Raises Funding From GAIL India’s Startup Initiative ‘Pankh’

[dropcap]G[/dropcap]urugram based nutrition enriched food manufacturing startup Hungry Foal has secured a Pre-Series A funding from GAIL (India) Ltd  under GAIL’s startup initiative ‘Pankh’. The agreements were exchanged at ‘Startup Sangam’ - an event organized by Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas in the presence of Shri Dharmendar Pradhan, Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Skill Development & Entrepreneurship, Govt of India at The Taj Mahal Hotel, New Delhi, INDIA. The funds will be used for market expansion, technology and production ramp up, the company told in a press statement. JV Foodworks Pvt Ltd owned Hungry Foal was started 15 months ago, developed its products in technical collaborations with the scientists at SINED - TBI, NDRI, Karnal. Also ...