After largely making it available in Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune, Zomato has now expanded its home-cooked meal service ‘Zomato Everyday’ to Mumbai.

As per the foodtech major, the service will be currently available in Malad and Goregaon, and will soon be expanded into more areas across the financial capital.

Saurabh Patel, a marketing professional at Zomato Everyday, said in a LinkedIn post, “After Delhi NCR, Bengaluru, Hyderabad and Pune, Zomato Everyday is now live in the City of Dreams! Currently serving in Malad and Goregaon, coming soon in more locations.”

This comes two weeks after the Zomato Everyday announced its foray into Pune. 

Earlier in May, Inc42 reported that Zomato is eyeing to scale up Zomato Everyday in Bengaluru and Mumbai. 

During Zomato’s earnings call for Q4 FY24, a company spokesperson said, “We want to continue expanding ‘Everyday’. Right now it’s largely in Gurugram, but over the next few months, we’ll see maybe Mumbai and Bengaluru being added as cities where we will launch ‘Everyday’ and then we’ll take it from there in terms of other cities that we want to expand in.”

Zomato launched this service in early 2023, which was a remodelled version of its earlier similar offering, Zomato Instant. With ‘Zomato Everyday’, the company offers fresh home-cooked meals starting at INR 89. 

The remodeling was reportedly due to low daily order volume, and the inability to scale the segment and pay fixed costs.

Initially, Zomato Everyday was piloted in select areas of Gurugram in February last year. Since then, the service has expanded to multiple cities across locations, underscoring that demand for affordable, homestyle food still exists.

With Zomato Everyday, the foodtech aggregator intends to target a new set of consumers, including working professionals residing away from their homes and looking for affordable home-cooked meal options.

Earlier in May this year, Zomato’s counterpart Swiggy also relaunched its homestyle meal delivery offering Swiggy Daily in Bengaluru. 

Swiggy introduced Daily in 2019 but had to shut down this offering following the slump in demand due to Covid-induced lockdowns. 

While Zomato witnessed some degrowth in the GOV of its core food delivery business in Q4 FY24 with its GOV falling 0.6% QoQ to INR 8,439 Cr, the company continues to remain profitable. 

Riding on the back of its quick commerce vertical, Blinkit, Zomato reported its fourth consecutive profitable quarter with profit after tax (PAT) rising almost 27% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to INR 175 Cr in Q4.

The development comes on the same day of Zomato’s shares touching an all time high of INR 209.80 apiece during the intraday trading following the shareholders’ approval to create a new employee stock option pool of 18.26 Cr shares.

The post Zomato Expands Its Meal Service ‘Zomato Everyday’ To Mumbai appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Listed logistics major Delhivery has alloted 36,525 stock options under the Delhivery Employees Stock Option Plan 2012.

“… the Nomination and Remuneration Committee of the Board of Directors of the Company has approved the grant of 36,525 stock options under Delhivery Employees Stock Option Plan 2012 (“ESOP-2012”) to the eligible employees of the Company on Tuesday, July 02, 2024,” the startup said in an exchange filing.

The stock options would vest over a period of four years from the date of grant. 

While 10% of the newly granted ESOPs will vest on completion of 12 months from the date of grant, 30% will vest within 24 months. The remaining stock options will vest at a rate of 15% every 6 months thereafter.

As per the stock’s last closing price on Tuesday, the new stock options are valued at over INR 1.45 Cr.

Last month, Delivery allocated 11.06 Lakh ESOPs. 

Back then the startup said it issued over 2.85 Lakh equity shares under Delhivery ESOP 2012, over 3.49 Lakh equity shares under ESOP II 2020, and over 4.70 Lakh equity shares under the ESOP III 2020 scheme.

Prior to that, in May, the startup issued 75,000 stock options under ESOP-2012.

It is pertinent to note that Delhivery incurred a consolidated loss of INR 69 Cr in Q4 of FY24 as against a net profit of INR 11.7 Cr in the preceding quarter. Revenue from operations declined 5% on a quarterly basis to INR 2,076 Cr in Q4 on the back of a reduction in express parcel and cross-border service volumes.

ESOPs are used by organisations, especially startups, to reward and retain employees. In recent times, a number of listed new-age tech startups have announced allotment of ESOPs.

For instance, Paytm allotted over 87,000 ESOPs in May, while Policybazaar parent PB Fintech allocated over 48 Lakh ESOPs in June.

Besides, a number of startups, including DeHaat, XYXX, and Purplle, have announced ESOP buyback programmes in recent times to provide liquidity to employees.

Shares of Delhivery ended today’s session 0.38% lower at 397.95 on the BSE.

The post Delhivery Expands ESOP Pool With Allotment Of 36,525 Stock Options appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Bengaluru-based supplement brand Supply6 has roped in former South African cricketer AB de Villiers as an investor and brand ambassador.

Founded in 2019 by Vaibhav Bhandari and Rahul Jacob, Supply6 is a supplement brand offering products, including nutrients like protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals and fibre. It claims to have products addressing common deficiencies in Vitamin D, B12, and gut health as well as offering targeted solutions around skin wellness and energy enhancement.

To date, the startup claims to have raised a total funding of $1 Mn.

Jacob said that AB de Villiers is an excellent fit for the brand because his dynamic approach to his career and health aligns perfectly with the startup’s mission.

“We are confident that this collaboration will enhance our connection with our audience.  de Villiers’ esteemed reputation in the sports world mirrors the trust and quality we aim to provide with our products,” he added. 

AB de Villiers said, “As an athlete, I recognise the critical role nutrition plays in health and performance. Their commitment to comprehensive and convenient nutrition solutions aligns with my dedication to peak performance and well-being. The brand’s rapid expansion is impressive, and I am eager to support its mission of promoting healthier lifestyles.”

The startup competes against the likes of supplement startups like OZiva, BoldFit, HealthKart, among others.

The health and wellness segment was traditionally dominated by brands like Amway, Cipla, Herbalife, and Himalaya Wellness. The market has recently seen a rise in startups such as OZiva, MuscleBlaze, Cureveda, Wellbeing Nutrition, What’s Up Wellness and more. 

These startups have collectively raised over $70 Mn+. According to the ministry of food processing industries, the dietary supplements market in India is likely to reach $10.2 Bn by 2026, clocking a 22% YoY growth rate since 2020, when it was valued at $3.9 Bn.

For the past several years, many cricket celebrities have been showing their involvement in the startup industry as investors, brand ambassadors and founders. 

For instance, in April this year, personal hygiene D2C brand Svish roped in Shikhar Dhawan as an investor and brand ambassador in a bridge funding round. 

In the same month, former Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni joined Pune-based EV startup EMotorad as an equity investor as well as a brand ambassador.

The post Supplement Startup Supply6 Ropes In South African Cricketer AB de Villiers As Investor appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has approved the initial public offerings of omnichannel retailer FirstCry and SaaS startup Unciommerce.

As per the latest update on the regulator’s website, SEBI issued its observation letter to Brainbees Solutions Ltd, the parent of FirstCry, on June 25. Meanwhile, Unicommerce was issued the observation letter on June 28.

In SEBI’s parlance, issuing an offer letter is a greenlight to proceed with the offer.

As per the DRHP, SoftBank-backed FirstCry is looking to raise INR 1,816 Cr via a fresh issue of shares. Its IPO will also comprise an offer-for-sale (OFS) component of up to 5.4 Cr equity shares. 

Shareholders, including SoftBank, Premji Invest, TPG Growth and Mahindra & Mahindra, will offload shares under the OFS.

It is pertinent to note that Firstcry first filed its DRHP in December last year. However, it withdrew the IPO papers after SEBI flagged that some of the key indicators were missing. Following this, the kids-focussed retailer refiled its DRHP in April this year.

As per the updated draft papers, FirstCry posted INR 4,814 Cr sales in the first nine months of FY24. Its net loss stood at INR 278.2 Cr during the period.

The startup’s net loss stood at INR 486 Cr in FY23 on an operating revenue of INR 5,632.5 Cr. 

On the other hand, Unicommerce’s IPO will not have any issue of fresh shares. It will include only an OFS component of up to 2.98 Cr shares. 

SoftBank affiliate SB Investment Holdings (UK) Limited plans to offload up to 1.6 Cr shares, while AceVector (formerly Snapdeal) will offload up to 1.14 Cr shares. 

Unicommerce filed its DRHP with SEBI in January this year. 

Last month, the startup filed an addendum to the DRHP to classify SoftBank-owned Starfish I Pte Ltd and Snapdeal’s cofounders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Kumar Bansal as its promoters. 

On the financials front, Unicommerce posted a profit of INR 6.3 Cr in the first half of FY24 on an operating revenue of INR 51 Cr. In FY23, it reported a net profit of INR 6.4 Cr, up 8% from INR 6 Cr in the previous fiscal year. For the same period, operating revenue rose 52% to INR 90 Cr from INR 59 Cr in FY22.

The post SEBI Approves IPOs Of Unicommerce, FirstCry appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Ecommerce major Amazon’s cloud computing services arm Amazon Web Services (AWS) has rolled out its space accelerator programme, aimed at fostering spacetech startups in India.

AWS India has set aside $100K to back 24 spacetech startups under its 14-week accelerator programme, the company said in a statement.

The programme will help in fostering early and growth-stage startups in the spacetech sector by providing them with dedicated technical expertise, specialised AWS training, and mentoring from space domain and technical experts. 

This also marks AWS’s first-ever space accelerator programme in India. 

The initiative will also help these startups to build secure and scalable solutions using AWS technologies in GenAI, ML, data analytics and more. Besides, they will be trained on go-to-market strategies, fundraising and business fundamentals.

“Applications for the programme were evaluated based on the uniqueness and innovation of the solutions of the startups, product-market fit, innovation and sustainability, the creative application of AWS technology, and the team’s ability to deliver on their vision,” the statement said.

AWS’s Director of the Aerospace and Satellite Business Clint Crosier said, “We specifically chose to hold this first country-focused space accelerator in India because we see extraordinary growth opportunities in the India space sector.” 

“There are a record number of new Indian space startups forming, there is strong support from the Government of India as evidenced by our MoU with ISRO and IN-SPACe, and India has some of the best educated and proficient talent in the world in the technical areas that encompass space,” Crosier added.

This development comes a year after Amazon signed an MoU with the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and Indian National Space Promotion and Authorization Centre (IN-SPACe) to support spacetech innovations through cloud computing  

It was aimed at offering Indian spacetech startups with facilities such as research institutes and students with access to cutting-edge cloud technologies that accelerate the development of new solutions in the space sector.

According to Inc42’s Indian Spacetech Startup Landscape & Market Opportunity Report 2023, the sector is estimated to reach $77 Bn by 2030 at a 26% CAGR.

Here is a list of all the 24 spacetech startups which made it to the AWS India’s space accelerator programme

Advick AgVenture

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Nitesh K. Tank

Headquarter: Ahmedabad, Gujarat

Advick AgVenture is a farmer-focused satellite-based remote sensing technology provider.

AERO2ASTRO

Founded in: 2017

Founded by: Ted Solomon

Headquarter: Chennai, Tamil Nadu

AERO2ASTRO operates a research platform intended to become an aerospace manufacturer and have a private rocket launch program. The company is currently operating in stealth mode.

Aeroin SpaceTech Pvt. Ltd.

Founded in: 2021 

Founded by: M S Ragul

Headquarter: Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Aeroin SpaceTech Pvt. Ltd. is an aerospace company that researches and educates on space engineering development.

Agnihotri Aerospace

Founded in: 2022

Founded by: Mahabaleshwar Bhat

Headquarter: Mangaluru, Karnataka

Agnihotri Aerospace is a startup focusing on payload delivery and soft landing technologies.

AkashaLabdhi Pvt. Ltd.

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Siddharth Jena,

Headquarter: Roorkee, Uttarakhand

AkashaLabdhi Pvt. Ltd. provides users with a company that specialises in aerospace engineering and developing advanced aerospace technologies.

Blurgs AI

Founded in: 2020

Founded by: Roshan Raj

Headquarter: Bengaluru, Karnataka

Blurgs AI is a startup that provides marine data tracking solutions.

Brahmaandco Spacetech

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Satish More

Headquarter: Mumbai, Maharashtra

Bramhaandco Spacetech focuses on lunar exploration and mining. They specialize in the research, development, and manufacturing of rovers and landers, with plans to establish mining operations in the near future.

CoralComp Pvt. Ltd.

Founded in: 2017

Founded by: Bakthyaruddin Ahmed Syed and Hafsa Mohsina

Headquarter: Hyderabad, Telangana

CoralComp Pvt. Ltd. offers weather analysis services tailored to the aerospace industry.

Cosmicport

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Liwaans Amuthan

Headquarter: Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu

Cosmicport focuses on developing Small Satellite Launch Vehicles and Earth Observation Satellites.

Cosmo Crawler

Founded in: 2018

Founded by: Yoga Raj

Headquarter: Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Cosmo Crawler is dedicated to creating reusable launch vehicles.

Expanse Cosmos

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Mir Shaz Ali.

Headquarter: Delhi

Expanse Cosmos is a space tech startup building the next generation of launch vehicles for small satellites.

GISKernel Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

Founded in: 2019

Founded by: Akshay Loya

Headquarter: Pune, Maharashtra

GISKernel Technologies Pvt. Ltd. collects and analyzes comprehensive geospatial maps and datasets.

Inbound Aerospace

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Aravind B, and Vishal Reddy

Headquarter: Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Inbound Aerospace provides a spacecraft platform that uses the unique microgravity environment of space to develop numerous things that are critical to life on Earth which can’t be efficiently manufactured on Earth. Its targeted customers include companies engaged in in-space manufacturing of products for earth applications pharmaceuticals, semiconductors, fibre optics, and carbon nanotubes among others.

Insight360.ai

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: R Om Prakash

Headquarter: Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Insight360.ai leverages advanced AI algorithms and satellite imagery to enhance military intelligence and global security through Geospatial Intelligence (GEOINT) solutions.

KosmosOne

Founded in: 2022

Founded by: Atharva Barbudhe

Headquarter: Suryatola, Maharashtra

KosmosOne is a space-tech startup offering solutions for space exploration. It claims to be working on developing an autonomous space station that will be equipped with robotic arms, AI-powered operations and reusable re-entry vehicles.

Omspace Rocket and Exploration

Founded in: 2020

Founded by: Ravindra Raj B. M.

Headquarter: Gandhinagar, Gujarat

Omspace Rocket and Exploration manufactures small rockets to carry nano and cube satellites to Low Earth Orbit.

Onnes Cryogenics Pvt. Ltd.

Founded in: 2021

Founded by: Rama Krishna Prasad Aluru and Vikram Srinivasa Raghavan

Headquarter: Hyderabad, Telangana

Onnes Cryogenics Pvt. Ltd. manufactures a wide range of cryogenic products for space, military, defence, and commercial industries.

Pramatra Space

Founded in: 2022

Founded by: Richa Hukumchand and Vinay Hukumchand

Headquarter: Bengaluru, Karnataka

Pramatra Space is an encryption systems for digital ecosystems and enterprises. It offers data security solution preventing data leaks, and loss using quantum technology.

Satlabs Space Systems

Founded in: 2023

Founded by: Saisree Eega, and Sooraj Gopakuma

Headquarter: Bengaluru, Karnataka

Satlabs Space Systems provides a data relay satellite constellation (type of communications satellite) for network access to machines on Earth and in space.

Sisir Radar

Founded in: 2022

Founded by: Tapan Misra (former Director of Space Applications Centre, ISRO and Physical Research Laboratory), Soumya Misra and Urmi Bhambhani.

Headquarter: Kolkata, West Bengal

Sisir Radar is a startup focusing on radar technology. It claims to have developed high-resolution Ground Penetrating Radars (GPR) promising to reshape remote sensing across various industries, setting new standards for data accuracy and accessibility.

Space Aura

Founded in: 2017

Founded by: Aakash Porwal

Headquarter: Mumbai, Maharashtra

Space Aura is a space tourism and human spaceflight company from India for the world. It claims to offer space travel inside Spaceship SKAP1. 

SpanTrik

Founded in: 2022

Founded by: Hitendra Singh and Kajal Rajbhar

Headquarter: Hyderabad, Telangana

SpanTrik is developing reusable rockets to offer affordable and reliable launch services for satellites.

Taramandal

Founded in: 2022

Founded by: Vineel Judson

Headquarter: Vishakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh

Taramandal develops sensors and controllers for orbital vehicles, providing systems for nano and cube satellites, and calibration of sensing devices and transducers.

Thrustworks Dynetics

Founded in: 2023

Founded by:  Manan Joshi and Kalyani Shinde

Headquarter: Pune, Maharashtra

Thrustworks Dynetics designs and develops propulsion systems for aerospace applications.

The post Meet The 24 Indian Startups Which Made Into AWS Space Accelerator’s List appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Centre has rolled out a new initiative to facilitate onboarding of 5 Lakh micro and small businesses on the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) platform.

The MSME Trade Enablement and Marketing (TEAM) scheme was launched by Union Minister for Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) Jitan Ram Manjhi with a budget of  INR 277 Cr for three years.

“The MSME TEAM Initiative aims at facilitating five lakh micro and small enterprises for onboarding onto the Open Network for Digital Commerce by providing financial assistance for onboarding, cataloguing, account management, logistics, packaging material and design,” Manjhi said. 

Notably, half of these beneficiary MSMEs will be women-owned enterprises, he added. 

Last week, it was reported that the government was looking to launch a new scheme to help MSMEs join the ONDC network and start selling their products online. 

Besides, MSME TEAM, another initiative, Yashasvini, was also launched, aimed  at formalising women-owned informal micro-enterprises and providing capacity building, training, handholding and mentorship to the women-owned enterprises.

“A series of campaigns will be organised by the Ministry of MSME in collaboration with other Central Ministries/Departments/State Governments and Women Industry Associations during FY24-25, focusing on tier 2 and 3 cities in the country,” the ministry added.

Manjhi further outlined six pillars that would drive the MSME sector growth. 

These include formalisation and access to credit, increased access to market and e-commerce adoption, increased productivity through modern technology,  enhanced skill levels and digitalisation in the service sector, boosted khadi, village and coir industries and empowerment of women, and artisans, through enterprise creation. 

These initiatives come at the heart of ONDC introducing several initiatives to onboard small businesses. 

In February this year, it rolled out the DigiReady Certification Certificates DRC portal for MSMEs to help them assess their preparedness to join the ONDC network as sellers. 

Before this, ONDC even partnered with Meta to educate MSMEs to build conversational buyer and seller experiences on WhatsApp through Meta’s business and technical solution providers.

Besides, a push for MSMEs using the ONDC network was also among the priorities outlined in the BJP manifesto for general elections. 

It is pertinent to note that ONDC aims to democratise ecommerce by providing services at lower costs compared to other online marketplaces. 

Launched in 2021 under the aegis of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), ONDC is an open protocol-based network to enable local commerce across multiple segments, including grocery, mobility, among others.

Not to mention, the Indian e-commerce market is poised to reach a size of $400 Bn by the end of 2030 growing at CAGR of 19% during the period. 

The post Govt Rolls Out Scheme To Facilitate Onboarding 5 Lakh MSMEs On ONDC appeared first on Inc42 Media.

With an eye on diversifying its ecommerce offerings on the back of Open Network for Digital Commerce collaboration, Bhavish Aggarwal led ridesharing unicorn Ola Mobility is now all set to roll out its grocery delivery through the network over the next few days.

As per Moneycontrol’s report, citing a source, “Ola enables more than 30% of ONDC food orders in Bengaluru and Delhi-NCR, in its efforts to capture significant market share of the online food ecosystem in the immediate term. Further, it is also leveraging its core expertise in the logistics domain by offering EV-based logistics services at a highly competitive price to smaller sellers on the ONDC network.”

The report also added that Ola is already the second largest buyer-side platform after Magicpin in the food category, processing 15,000-20,000 food orders per day. 

With its new foray, Ola will be taking on Pai Platforms (Paytm Ecommerce), Swiggy’s Instamart, Blinkit, among others.

Inc42 has reached out to Ola for comments on the development. The story will be updated based on the responses. 

It is pertinent to note that this is not the first time Ola has ventured into grocery delivery. It launched its standalone food delivery app in 2015 with the idea of leveraging its cabs and drivers to deliver groceries alongside. However, it discontinued this offering just nine months after the launch. 

In 2021, the company reintroduced its grocery delivery with Ola Dash in by enabling services across Mumbai and Bengaluru, but wind down the operations after a year. 

This development comes at a time when Ola is working on giving its user base an option to purchase groceries, fashion and apparel via its app,

Moreover, the startup is deepening its ties with ONDC by inking a partnership to offer last-mile logistics services for all categories, including food delivery, grocery shopping and pharmaceuticals.

Meanwhile, ONDC is expanding its services by entering new segments and onboarding new participants. Notably, it clocked a 23% month-on-month increase in the platform’s transactions in May, recording 89 Lakh transactions across retail and ride-hailing segments. 

Startups in the likes of Paytm, Ola, PhonePe, Shiprocket, Delhivery, Dainik Jagran, Uber, IDFC Bank, Kotak, Dunzo, and Tata Neu have already integrated some of their services with the ONDC.

The post Ola To Launch Grocery Delivery Via ONDC Soon, Eyes Major Share Of Food Orders On Network appeared first on Inc42 Media.

A month after injecting 1,660 Cr in its ecommerce marketplace in India, US-based ecommerce giant Amazon has infused an additional INR 600 Cr (about $72 Mn) in its Indian fintech arm Amazon Pay India.

As per regulatory filings accessed by Inc42, Amazon Pay allotted 59.99 Cr shares to Amazon Corporate Holdings and 59,952 Cr shares to Amazon.com for INR 10 apiece.

With this, Amazon’s investment in Amazon Pay this year now stands at INR 950 Cr. The company infused INR 350 Cr in the fintech arm in February this year, Economic Times reported.

Earlier, Amazon infused INR 1,000 Cr in Amazon Pay in 2021. 

It is pertinent to note that Amazon Pay India received payment aggregator licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in February. Additionally, it holds a prepaid payment instrument (PPI) licence since 2017. 

Amazon Pay offers services like UPI payments, bill payments, ticket bookings, and buying car and bike insurance.

The fintech entity is also looking to further diversify its offerings. For instance, in April it started working with the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to roll out credit services to customers through UPI. Amazon already offers instant credit through its BNPL product called Amazon Pay Later option. 

As per reports, more than 100 Mn customers use Amazon Pay UPI for various transactions. The ecommerce major also claims that Amazon Pay has so far partnered with 8.5 Mn brick-and-mortar sellers and more than 10,000 online sellers.

However in terms of monthly UPI transactions, Amazon Pay is behind its rivals like PhonePe, Paytm, Google Pay.

As per NPCI data, Amazon Pay processed 6.8 Cr UPI transactions worth INR 7,419 Cr in May out of the total 1,403.58 Cr UPI transactions worth INR 20.44 Lakh Cr during the month.

The development comes at a time when Amazon’s ecommerce rival Flipkart is also looking to make a mark in the fintech space. On Wednesday, Inc42 reported that Flipkart has launched its fintech app super.money app in beta mode. While super.money currently offers UPI payments, the ecommerce giant plans to  soon introduce a number of other financial services.

The post Amazon Pumps In Another INR 600 Cr In Amazon Pay India appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Conversational engagement platform Gupshup has rolled out India’s first conversational buyer app on the government-backed Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), aimed at boosting ecommerce inclusivity nationwide.

This app will enable buyers to discover, browse and buy products on the ONDC network via WhatsApp. It provides a shopping experience directly within the Meta-owned messaging platform, eliminating the need to download any additional apps.

Besides, Gupshup plans to soon offer enterprises to use this conversational commerce feature in their chatbots, making shopping easier for their customers.

The app is currently in Beta mode, meaning it is available to a limited group of users. At this stage, users can order food and beverages. They can share their location in a WhatsApp chat, browse nearby sellers, and make payments directly through WhatsApp.

Soon, users will also be able to use additional messaging services like Google RCS and voice commands to order. 

“India’s diverse population uses different mobile tools, varied languages, and possesses different levels of tech-savvy. But they all know how to chat via WhatsApp. Delivering conversational experiences via the messaging app is the only way to reach everyone,” said Gupshup’s CEO and founder Beerud Sheth.

“Gupshup’s Buyer App on ONDC brings the vast commerce network to users nationwide, usable in any language, quickly and easily. This will truly transform digital commerce on a population scale in India,” Sheth added.

Founded in 2004 by Sheth, Gupshup enables businesses to advertise, communicate, and converse with their customers by leveraging AI and CPaaS. It serves over 45,000 brands across the globe to deliver better customer experience, and increased revenue while saving costs. 

Its notable clients include Citibank, AkzoNobel, Khan Academy, Unilever, Dream11, Netflix, Flipkart, and Ola. With total funding of $486 Mn, it counts Tiger Global, Fidelity Management and Research Co. LLC, among others as its investors.

This comes as the latest addition to ONDC’s Buyer App portfolio with the likes of  Paytm, MagicPin, Pincode, Meesho, and Mystore already making the list. 

Notably, ONDC enables businesses to function as buyer apps and seller apps on its network. Buyer apps help sellers make their products discoverable to potential consumers nationwide.

Launched in 2021 under the aegis of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), ONDC is an open protocol-based network to enable local commerce across multiple segments, including grocery and mobility among others. 

Meanwhile, ONDC is expanding its services by entering new segments and onboarding new participants. Notably, it clocked a 23% month-on-month increase in the transactions on the platform in May. It posted a record 89 Lakh transactions across retail and ride-hailing segments in the same period. 

Startups in the likes of Paytm, Ola, PhonePe, Shiprocket, Delhivery, Dainik Jagran, Uber, IDFC Bank, Kotak, Dunzo, and Tata Neu have already integrated some of their services with the ONDC.

At the heart of all these is the burgeoning ecommerce landscape in India, expected to reach a size of $400 Bn by the end of 2030

The post Gupshup Rolls Out India’s First Conversational Buyer App On ONDC appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Looking to recoup its operating costs, the government-run Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) will likely start levying transaction charges in the current financial year.

T Koshy, managing director and chief executive of ONDC, told Business Standard that the quantum of the fee has not been decided yet, however, it is likely to be small and levied on each transaction.

“We will evaluate the network growth and decide the right time. We have not decided how to structure it,” he said.

While ONDC currently has no revenue model, its costs are low as it does not have a central platform or software that it needs to maintain.

“We are just a Section 8 company performing the role of a digital transformation provider. There is no system or platform that we need to maintain. Thirdly, demand generation is a collaborative effort among the buyer app, seller app, sellers and ONDC. All these keep our costs minimalistic,” Koshy added. 

Launched in 2021 under the aegis of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), ONDC is an open protocol-based network to enable local commerce across multiple segments, including grocery and mobility among others. 

It aims to democratise ecommerce by providing services at lower costs compared to other online marketplaces. 

This comes at a time when the ONDC has been seeing a rapid traction, clocking a record 89 Lakh transactions in May across retail and ride-hailing segments. This was an increase of 23% month-on-month (MoM).

The network comprises over 5.35 Lakh sellers spanning 1,200 cities. 

Back in December 2022, Koshy said that ONDC would likely start charging a ‘small fee’ from platforms and the fee will contribute towards the ‘maintenance and development’ of the network.

Meanwhile, startups in the ecommerce ecosystem are lining up to join the ONDC to shore up their business operations. Major companies such as Paytm, Ola, PhonePe, and Shiprocket have joined the ONDC network recently. 

Additionally, the likes of Delhivery, Dainik Jagran, Uber, IDFC Bank, Kotak, Dunzo, and Tata Neu have also integrated some of their services with the ONDC.

The post ONDC May Start Levying Small Fee On Each Transaction From This Fiscal : CEO Koshy appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Fintech platform Plus Gold has raised $1.2 Mn (around INR 10 Cr) in a seed funding round led by JITO Incubation And Innovation Foundation, along with participation from Venture Catalysts and The Signal Group’s investment arm Signal Ventures.

Celebrities and entrepreneurs, including Sonakshi Sinha, GIVA founder Sachin Shetty and ACKO CEO Varun Dua also took part in the fundraise.

The Bengaluru-based startup will deploy the fresh proceeds to boost its technological infrastructure, improving user experience, strengthen security measures and develop AI-driven investment advisory features. 

Besides, it plans to expand its team across technology and customer service verticals.

Founded by Raj Parakh and Veer Mishra in 2023, Plus Gold provides a platform for making investments in gold through systematic investment plans (SIPs) or one time transactions. 

“The funds will be instrumental in accelerating our growth trajectory, allowing us to refine our technology, expand our user base, and introduce innovative features. Our goal is to make gold investment as easy and accessible as using a smartphone app, while still honoring the deep cultural significance of gold in India,” said Mishra. 

Venture Catalysts’ founder and MD Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, said, “By seamlessly blending the cultural importance of gold with cutting-edge technology, Plus Gold is not just tapping into a market – it’s reshaping it. The platform’s unique feature allowing users to convert digital investments into physical jewellery addresses a crucial gap in the market. With India’s gold market estimated at $80 Bn, we believe Plus Gold is exceptionally well-positioned to capture a substantial share.”

Till date, the startup has raised INR 7 Cr in total funding. It counts the likes of US bank Wells Fargo & Company (WFC), Card91 cofounder Vineet Saxena, Amazon Pay head Vijay Rajagopal and others among its investors. 

It competes against Paytm, Groww, DigiGold, Jupiter Money and others in the golf investment segment. 

With the increasing adoption of fintech platforms and growing awareness of gold as an investment option, the Gold loans market is expected to reach $150 Bn by the end of 2030 with a CAGR of 5.96% during the forecast period 2024-2030.

However, on the investment front, the Indian startup ecosystem is reeling under the impact of the ongoing funding winter. The fintech sector has also not remained unaffected by this. 

Despite this, the fintech sector continues to be a lucrative opportunity for investors, as the country’s fintech market is expected to reach a size of $2.1 Tn by 2030.

The post Plus Gold Pockets Seed Funding To Boost User Experience In Gold Investment appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Doubling down on its premium play, hospitality major OYO has opened its first luxury hotel in Dubai under the brand ‘Palette’.

OYO is looking to cash in on the increase in the number of Indian tourists travelling to Dubai.

“India ranked top in terms of the number of passengers, with a total of 11.9 Mn visitors to Dubai in 2023, followed by Saudi Arabia with 6.7 Mn tourists and the United Kingdom with a total of 5.9 Mn tourists,” OYO said in a statement. 

OYO claims to have over 700 properties in the UAE, including over 200 in Dubai. The unicorn said it expects the number of Indian tourists visiting Dubai to grow significantly in 2024 following the relaxation in the city’s visa policy.

Commenting on the opening of the hotel, OYO Middle East business head Nitin Gupta said, “The combination of rising affluence, the perception of Dubai as a luxury destination, and the desire for exclusive experiences among Indian tourists is expected to drive the demand for premium hotels in Dubai. We have been seeing a surge in the number of Indian tourists asking for luxury accommodation in the region. OYO plans to meet the requirements of tourists visiting Dubai through this initiative.”

The development is part of OYO’s efforts to increase the number of on premium properties in its portfolio. Last year, the Ritesh Agarwal-led startup launched the Palette brand for upscale resorts and hotels to target premium travellers.

Besides India, OYO has properties in the US, the UAE, and Thailand under the Palette brand. Earlier in March this year, OYO said it would open around 13 self-operated hotels by the end of this year under the Palette brand. 

OYO also has luxury hotels in India under the brand ‘Sunday’. It also operates Belvilla, a premium resort hotel brand, in Europe and Bali in Indonesia. 

Last month, OYO withdrew its draft red herring prospectus from SEBI, saying it was close to finalising its refinancing plans for its Term Loan B. 

Earlier this year, OYO founder Agarwal claimed in a social media post that the startup recorded its first full year of profitability in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) with a net profit of about INR 100 Cr. 

Recently, the SoftBank-backed startup also received the nod of its shareholders to raise INR 416.85 Cr by issuing preference shares.

The post OYO Opens Maiden Luxury Hotel In Dubai To Bolster Its Premium Portfolio appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Listed AI-powered fintech company Infibeam Avenues has entered into a pact with Ahmedabad-based Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India to expedite the adoption of AI across enterprises, startups and MSMEs in India.

As part of this Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Infibeam will offer technological support, infrastructure and expertise in developing open-source AI models, software integration and implementation, as well as AI-powered solutions tailored to various industry verticals.

“This collaboration designates Infibeam as the sole and exclusive technology partner, responsible for providing technological support, infrastructure, and expertise in developing open-source AI models, software integration and implementation, as well as AI-powered solutions tailored to various industry verticals,” Infibeam said in an exchange filing. 

Besides, the partnership will also focus on three programmes, including Start-up Accelerator Programme, AI Implementation Programme and MSME Support Programme.

“This collaboration aims to inject a dynamic factor into entrepreneurial ventures by integrating AI and tech solutions,” said Infibeam’s chairman and MD Vishal Mehta. 

Established in 1983, EDII is a national resources organisation in entrepreneurship education, research and training, startups and MSME growth, incubation, innovations and institution building.

EDII also aims to set up a dedicated unit in Gujarat’s GIFT City to facilitate activities outlined in its MoU with Infibeam.

As part of the pact, Infibeam claims to have already deployed its video AI developer platform THEIA at Gandhinagar to enable EDII’s students and entrepreneurs develop their own AI products using the platform. 

Founded in 2007, Infibeam offers comprehensive digital payment solutions and enterprise software platforms to businesses and governments across industry verticals. It claims to boast a user base of over 10 Mn merchants on its platform.

This collaboration comes a month after Infibeam secured final approval from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to operate as a payment aggregator.

The startup posted a 28% rise in its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to INR 49.2 Cr in the March quarter (Q4) of the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 38.4 Cr reported during the previous year’s quarter.

Its operating revenue increased over 11% to INR 726.8 Cr in Q4 FY24 from INR 652.7 Cr in the corresponding quarter of the previous year. 

The post Infibeam Partners EDII To Fuel AI Adoption For Enterprises, Startups And MSMEs appeared first on Inc42 Media.

The Centre is reportedly looking to launch a new scheme to help micro and small enterprises (MSEs) join the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) and start selling their products online. 

The micro, small and medium enterprises (MSME) ministry has proposed the Trade Enablement & Marketing (TEAM) scheme with a corpus of INR 277 Cr to help MSEs expand their business operations beyond traditional physical stores by using ONDC, Economic Times reported.

Citing an official, the report said that the initiative will help MSEs compete in the digital space at low costs as they would not have to pay high commissions to online marketplaces.

The government is looking to support 5,00,000 MSEs under the scheme, expected to run till 2026-27.

The MSEs will be provided subsidies via seller network participants (SNPs) to help cover costs for services like creating catalogues, managing accounts, packaging, and logistics, an official was cited as saying. 

SNPs help connect sellers to the ONDC network and provide services like creating product catalogue, managing accounts, and managing payments. 

Launched in 2021 under the aegis of the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), ONDC is an open protocol-based network to enable local commerce across multiple segments, including grocery, mobility, among others.

The network aims to democratise ecommerce by providing services at lower costs compared to other online marketplaces. The Indian ecommerce segment is currently dominated by behemoths like Amazon, Flipkart and Meesho.

ONDC has been continuously expanding its services by entering new segments and onboarding new participants. As a result, it clocked a 23% month-on-month increase in the transaction on the platform in May. It posted a record 89 Lakh transactions across retail and ride-hailing segments last month.

Besides, it has taken a number of steps to onboard small businesses. In February this year, ONDC launched the DigiReady Certifications (DRC) portal for the MSME sector by partnering with the Quality Council of India (QCI). 

The DRC portal helps MSMEs self-assess their preparedness to join the ONDC platform as sellers. 

Last year, ONDC also partnered Meta to educate small businesses to build conversational buyer and seller experiences on WhatsApp through Meta’s business and technical solution providers.

Amid all these, startups like Paytm, Ola, PhonePe, Meesho, and Shiprocket have integrated some of their services with ONDC.

At the heart of all these is the lucrative Indian ecommerce market, which is expected to clock a CAGR of 19% during 2022-2030 to reach a size of $400 Bn by the end of this period.

The post Centre To Launch Trade Marketing Scheme To Help Small Enterprises Join ONDC appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Government-run oil and gas giant Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) has inked a partnership with Bengaluru-based electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Bounce Infinity to establish retail stores for two-wheeler EVs at BPCL fuel retail outlets.

This collaboration will leverage BPCL’s extensive network to transform select fuel stations into EV sales hubs. As per BPCL’s website, it has over 14,802 fuel stations across the country.

These stores will be operated either by Bounce Infinity or through BPCL’s dealer network and each outlet will have charging points for customers to charge their vehicles on-site.

Bounce Infinity will help BPCL’s on-ground dealers by offering marketing support, managing inventory, and providing training. The state gas company also plans to offer EV charging stations at around 7,000 petrol stations over the next five years.

“Partnering with Bounce Infinity is an integral part of our strategy to transform our fuel stations into versatile energy hubs that cater to the evolving needs of our customers and contribute to environmental sustainability,” said BPCL business head for retail Pardeep Goyal.

While these stores are designed to make EVs more accessible and to raise awareness among aspiring EV customers, they also intend to facilitate a smooth transition from internal combustion vehicles to electric vehicles.

“By targeting the large base of petrol two-wheeler owners who come to refuel at BPCL stations, this partnership aims to encourage a seamless transition to EVs,” as stated by the company. 

Bharat Petroleum’s retail infrastructure includes a network of installations, depots, energy stations, aviation service stations and LPG distributors. 

This development comes close to Bounce recording a 13% net loss decline to INR 197 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23) from INR 243.3 Cr in the previous year, following strong sales of its electric vehicles (EVs). 

Its operating revenue increased by 510% to INR 90.9 Cr during the year under review from INR 14.9 Cr in FY22. 

Founded in 2014 by Anil G, Varun Agni, and Vivekananda Hallekere, Bounce began operations as a bike rental platform. However, it pivoted to become an EV manufacturer in 2022. Currently, it manufactures and sells EV scooters and also allows customers to directly rent out the electric scooters from designated points. 

It has raised a total funding of over $234 Mn to date and is reportedly planning to raise a funding round of $20 Mn to $40 Mn from new as well as existing investors. 

The post BPCL Partners With Bounce Infinity To Sell EVs At Fuel Pumps appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Neobanking startup Jupiter has raised INR 20 Cr (about $2.4 Mn) in the maiden funding round for its non-banking financial (NBFC) arm Amica Finance.

As per the regulatory filings accessed by Inc42, the funding round saw participation from Peak XV Partners, Matrix Partners India, BEE Accelerate Fund, QED Fund, Global Founders Capital, Tiger Global, among others.

The development was first reported by Entrackr.

Amica Finance raised the funding by allotting 97.89 Lakh Series A compulsory convertible preference shares (CCPS) at INR 20.43 apiece. 

While Peak XV infused INR 5.25 Cr, Matrix Partners India invested INR 4.32 Cr. QED Fund infused INR 3.58 Cr in Jupiter’s NFBC arm.

Amica Finance said it would use the proceeds to meet the general corporate needs of the company.

It is pertinent to note that Jupiter received the NBFC licence from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) in April last year. 

Earlier this year, rating agency ICRA said in a report that Amica Finance leverages the Jupiter platform and its client base for loan originations, in addition to funding access in the form of inter-corporate deposits. 

The NBFC provides short-term unsecured personal loans with an average ticket size of about INR 26,000 for non-interest-bearing loans and about INR 31,500 for interest-bearing loans, as per ICRA.

Amica Finance began loan disbursements in June 2023 and had assets under management (AUM) of INR 60.5 Cr as of September 30, 2023, with the cumulative disbursements of INR 94.1 Cr during H1 FY2024, the rating agency said.

Founded in 2019 by serial entrepreneur Jitendra Gupta, Jupiter offers a range of financial services, including debit cards, SIPs, mutual funds, personalised savings options, expense management, and UPI payments.

It has raised a total funding of about $169 Mn till date and counts the likes of Tiger Global, Peak XV Partners, and Matrix Partners among its investors. 

Last week, it was reported that Jupiter has received a prepaid payments instrument licence from the RBI and the startup plans to introduce a prepaid account facility in the coming months.

Jupiters’ consolidated net loss more than doubled year-on-year to INR 327 Cr in the financial year 2022-23 (FY23), while operating revenue soared over 1,500% to INR 7.1 Cr.

The post Jupiter Raises INR 20 Cr From Peak XV, Matrix, Others For NBFC Arm Amica Finance appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Sports broadcasting technology provider Quidich Innovation Labs has raised an undisclosed amount in its Series A funding round from Centre Court Capital.

The startup plans to use the fresh capital to expand its footprint across new sporting ventures and develop its technology stack.

Founded in 2013 by Rahat Kulshreshtha and Gaurav Mehta, Quidich Innovation Labs is a sports broadcast and filming company that provides camera services integrated with augmented reality and real-time player tracking.  It uses its own hardware and software solution to enhance live sports broadcasts. 

“Beyond critical funding, Centre Court Capital bring a legacy of sporting excellence and a shared belief in the transformative power of technology in sports,” said Kulshreshtha.

Centre Court Capital’s general partner Mustafa Ghouse said,  “As sports broadcast technology undergoes a sector-wide transformation, broadcasters and leagues are searching for partners to guide them into a new era. We believe that Quidich’s dedication and unwavering commitment to quality demonstrated through their consistent pursuit of excellence in cricket broadcasting, positions them as the leaders for this transformation.” 

It counts broadcasting channels like Sky Sports and Sunset+Vine in the UK, Channel 7 in Australia, and SuperSport in South Africa among its clients. Besides, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), and the International Cricket Council (ICC), are also among its other clients. 

It is pertinent to note that since 2019, Quidich has focused exclusively on sports, starting with cricket. The startup was so far bootstrapped and raised its first investment via this Series A round. 

This funding aligns with CCC’s motto to invest in sports technology. Before this, it invested in a sports analytics company Stupa Sports Analytics last month.

This investment comes at a time when sports media rights are touching the roof in terms of valuation with the sports media rights market valued at $56 Bn at present and expected to reach $114 Bn by 2030.

The post Quidich Nets Maiden Funding To Boost Its Tech Stack In Sports Broadcasting appeared first on Inc42 Media.

AI-native sales operating system OrbitShift has secured $7 Mn (around INR 54.4 Cr) in its seed funding round led by Peak XV Partners, along with participation from existing investor Stellaris Venture Partners. 

The startup will use the fresh capital to scale up its customer base in the US as well as expand its technology and product team to diversify its product portfolio. 

Founded in 2022 by Mishra and Swapnil Saykar, OrbitShift is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) startup that helps businesses improve their sales processes. 

It provides a variety of tools and insights to help sales teams in different ways like by offering account insights, actionable recommendations, RFP/RFI response generation, account planning, and targeted pitch content generation, thereby driving co-ordinated GTM motion.

“We are addressing the challenges faced by consultative enterprise sales & marketing teams dealing with a glut of data, research reports, and disparate tools that don’t suit their sales motions. This investment will fuel our mission by expanding our product footprint and geographical reach,” Mishra added.

“We expect AI to transform all business functions. However, some functions, like enterprise sales, require more judgement and are therefore harder to tackle with AI. Enterprise sales involve selling holistic solutions – a mix of products and services – with long sales cycles and multiple stakeholders. This complexity presents an opportunity to build a generational AI-native software business, and we believe OrbitShift is poised to do just that,” said Alok Goyal, Partner at Stellaris Venture Partners

The startup claims to cut down the time companies spend on research and sales planning by 40-50% and increase sales productivity by 20-30%. For this, it speeds up tasks like client outreach, and creating high-quality responses, among others. 

Last year, OrbitShift raised pre-seed funding of $1.5 Mn from Stellaris Venture Partners and other angel investors. To date, it has reportedly raised $8.5 Mn.

It globally competes with Cognism, Komiko, and UpLead among others in the sales productivity software segment.

Peak XV, which led this round, also counts unicorns like CRED, Meesho, Groww, Info Edge, Mamaearth, Ixigo, and Unacademy, among other prominent startups in its portfolio. It has a portfolio of over 400 companies across 13 separate funds. 

Among the portfolio of Stellaris Venture Partners are companies like  Mamaearth, Whatfix, Propelld, Ayu Health, Kiwi, Turno, Rigi, and others.

This funding comes against the backdrop of the wider enterprisetech sector witnessing waning interest from the investors as the number of deals plummeted over 46% to 157 during 2023 from 292 in 2022.

The post AI Startup OrbitShift Nets $7 Mn To Help Businesses Streamline Sales appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Early stage venture capital firm 8X Ventures has marked the first close of its INR 200 Cr (around $24 Mn) DeepTech fund, with an additional greenshoe option of INR 100 Cr.

The fund has secured commitments exceeding INR 60 Cr and aims to back 18-20 early stage deeptech startups with an initial ticket size of INR 2-5 Cr each and total investments of up to INR 20 Cr each in 8-10 startups.

As per 8X Ventures’ managing partner Chirag Gupta, the fund will invest in startups across sectors, including water sanitation and hygiene, industry 4.0, advanced computing, biotech and B2B enterprise SaaS.

Founded in 2021 by Gupta, Esha Arya, Ajay Singh Rajput and Vinod Agarwal, 8X Ventures is a deeptech focused VC firm which claims to invest in startups that create sustainable value. The firm seeks to invest in deeptech, cleantech, logistics, mobility, industry 4.0, artificial intelligence, big data, 3D printing, robotics, and IoT among sectors.

It claims to have registered a 40% IRR (internal rate of return) from its inaugural global fund in 2022. Notably, it deployed $20 Mn in the (Middle East and North Africa) MENA region’s climate tech and cleantech startups. 

Among its portfolio are startups like a robotics and sanitation innovator Solinas Integrity, a molecular diagnostics pioneer D-Nome, a next-gen computing company LightSpeed Photonics, an Industrial IoT enterprise XYMA Analytics and a social media listening AI ZENPULSAR. 

8X Ventures also aims to leverage its international presence in the Middle East and Europe, to help portfolio companies expand globally and attract regional investors for larger follow on rounds. 

Last year, it outlined its plans to help at least one-third of the startups in its portfolio to expand to the Middle East by 2024. 

This development comes close on the heels of a surge in deeptech and artificial intelligence with players betting across these sectors.

Just a day ago, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry was also reportedly mulling over the deeptech startup policy to provide long-term funds to companies operating in the sector.

Last year, deeptech venture capital fund also closed its INR 50 Cr fund, with participation from founders in the Indian startup ecosystem and high net worth individuals (HNIs) located in India, the Middle East, and the US. 

The post 8X Ventures Hits First Close Of INR 200 Cr DeepTech Fund appeared first on Inc42 Media.

New Delhi-based beverage startup Rockit has raised INR 6 Cr (around $700K) in a pre-seed funding round led by Sauce.vc, along with participation from Roadies fame Rannvijay Singha. 

With this, Rockit has also roped in Singha as the brand ambassador. 

Rockit’s founder Vedant Garg told Inc42, “We plan to use this for scaling our offline distribution in North India and create brand awareness and increased presence in the market.”

Founded in 2023 by Garg, Rockit is a beverage startup in the energy drink segment. It sells its products through retail distribution and B2B ecommerce platforms like Udaan, ApnaKlub, and Walmart among others, at a price range of INR 10-20. 

Garg held the role of Associate Director in GRM Overseas Ltd and has done his masters from Bayes Business School under the University of London.

Rockit’s CEO Neelesh Patodi is an IIT Bombay alumni with experience in running a fruit-based carbonated beverage brand called Frooters. 

Garg said, “The Indian consumer preference is changing, aligning itself with global standards. We like to offer similar product with Indian taste and convenience to the youth of Tier II and III cities. Distribution is the key in India and as a family we have garnered the same through our five decades old family legacy in the food business.” 

Garg added that the company will expand its product offering from energy drinks to fruit-flavoured drinks and hydration products over time.

Yash Dholakia, Partner at Sauce VC, said, “The team at Rockit has deep distribution expertise and has created a high-quality product at the right price. We are very impressed by the early pre-launch feedback for the product and believe a large and highly profitable beverage brand can be built here.”

Sauce.vc  is an early-stage consumer VC fund managing over INR 800 Cr across four funds, with 25 investments. It comprises startups like Hocco Ice Creams, Mokobara, The Whole Truth Foods, XYXX, Supertails, and Innovist in its portfolio.

Rockit will compete with domestic brands like Lahori, Rockclimber, Jimmy’s Cocktails, Raskik, Paper Boat and global brands like Red Bull and Body Armor among others. 

Rockit’s funding marks the latest among the investments fused by investors into the beverage segment. 

Earlier in March, alcoholic beverage startup Woodsmen Mountain Whiskey raised a funding of $1.5 Mn in its Series A round, led by FinFirst Group and Anthill Ventures.

Last year, another D2C food and beverages startup Radiohead Brands, the parent of Jimmy’s Cocktails secured an additional funding of $1.3 Mn as part of its extended pre-Series A round.

The post Roadies’ Fame Rannvijay Backs Beverage Startup Rockit In Sauce.vc-Led Round appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Cyberattacks on Indian websites surged 261% year-on-year (YoY) in the first quarter (Q1) of calendar year 2024 (CY24), as per a report by security SaaS firm Indusface. 

India took the top spot on the list of 95 countries that witnessed the most DDoS (distributed denial of service) and bot attacks. In contrast, cyberattacks globally rose 76% YoY during the period. 

As per the report, the websites of the Indusface’s Indian customers faced 180 Cr cyberattacks during the period under review. This came largely on the back of threat actors increasingly targeting less regulated industries for ransom. 

The revelations were part of a report released by Indusface on the analysis of 180 Cr cyberattacks blocked by its AppTrana WAAP platform. The company tracked the data of its more than 5,000+ customers spanning 95 countries.

“A 2.5X increase in attacks on Indian applications is a matter of great concern. Compared to last year, we are also seeing more attacks on unregulated industries such as power and manufacturing. Consistent with global trends, DDoS and bots continue to be the top two threat vectors employed by attackers in India,” said Indusface cofounder and CEO Ashish Tandon.

As per the report, DDoS and bot attacks surged 76% YoY and 147% YoY globally between January 2024 and March 2024. 

For the uninitiated, a DDoS attack is a cyberattack that tries to disrupt a server or network by flooding it with too much traffic whereas a bot attack uses automated scripts to harm a website, such as by stealing data or making fake purchases. 

Giving a sector-wise breakdown of the data, the report titled ‘State of Application Security’ also noted that companies from critical power and energy sectors faced as many as 500 times more attacks than the industry average. 

Banking, finance and insurance were the most targeted sectors overall, as per Indusface data. 

Most industries fell prey to DDoS as it was the prominent attack method used. However, bot attacks were used more heavily to target industries such as retail, manufacturing, and healthcare.

The document also shed light on the trend that banking and finance sectors faced 4X more encoding attacks and 3X more HTTP protocol enforcement attacks compared to other industries. 

The data comes at a time when multiple big ticket Indian startups and companies have fallen prey to cyberattacks. In 2023, the likes of furniture rental startup Rentomojo, rail ticketing app RailYatri, and stock broker AngelOne suffered data breaches.

Taj Hotels suffered a major breach in December last year, which allegedly exposed the personal information of 1.5 Mn customers.

In March this year, the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) also warned of a new security vulnerability that could put scores of Google Chrome users in India at risk of attack by hackers.

The post Cyberattacks On Indian Websites Surge 261% YoY In Q1 2024: Report appeared first on Inc42 Media.

In an effort to boost investment activity and further drive manufacturing growth across the Indian startup ecosystem, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) will now likely sharpen its focus on easing early stage funding for startups and bringing down the compliance burden and overall logistics cost as part of its 100-day action plan.

This also comes at a time when the DPIIT has urged various corporates and unicorns to set up manufacturing-focused incubators. 

“Developing a strong manufacturing base is an essential activity for any nation as it promotes innovation and competitiveness, boosts employment, livelihoods and standards of living and strengthens self-reliance and economic stability,” DPIIT has said in a statement.

According to ET’s recent report, as part of the 100-day agenda, the Steering Committee for Advancing Local Value-add and Exports, or SCALE Committee, under the DPIIT, has been asked to identify the other sectors which may need manufacturing incentives.

Besides, the department is also contemplating reforms around ease of doing business right from commencement to closure, the report said, adding that the Centre is also planning public and private partnerships for startups.

The government may also introduce a lax compliance burden for startups under the second edition of the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill. Under the Bill, passed last year, more than 40,000 compliances were eliminated or simplified. 

The changes or schemes on the table will either form a part of the government’s 100-day plan or the department’s five-year plan, the report added.

Not to mention, the government is also reportedly planning to launch a deeptech startup policy enabling long-term funds for the startups in the sector. 

This development comes close on the heels of the government focusing on bolstering the startup ecosystem in the country on the back of several policies, schemes and other incentives. 

These schemes include Atal Innovation Mission, Multiple Grant Scheme, Startup India Initiatives and Startup India Seed Fund Scheme among others. 

To be sure, India is home to 110+ unicorns, 5,000+ angel investors, 1,400+ venture capitals and 1,100+ private equity firms. 

However, the startup landscape witnessed a paradigm shift on the funding front, registering a seven-year decline in 2023 reaching a mark of $10 Bn. This was a 60% dip from 2022 and a sharp 76% fall from the peak in 2021. 

The post Easing Startup Funding, Reduction In Compliances On DPIIT’s 100-Day Agenda appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Drone maker ideaForge has expanded the pool size of its employee stock option plan (ESOP) by allocating 1,678 equity shares to its employees.

“We wish to inform you that the executive committee of the board of the ideaForge Technology Limited (Company) on June 14, 2024, has approved the allotment of 1,678 equity shares having a face value of INR 10/- each towards the exercise of vested stock options under the ideaForge Employees Stock Option Scheme, 2018,” the company said in an exchange filing.

However, it didn’t reveal the number of employees who will benefit from this plan. 

With this allotment, the total number of shares issued increased from 4,28,88,323 to 4,28,90,000.

As per the stock’s closing price on Friday (June 14), the newly allotted shares are worth INR 13 lakh.

This comes at a time when several listed startups in the likes of Nykaa, DeHaat, Delhivery, Meesho, Paytm and Policybazar among others, have issued their ESOPs. 

ideaForge posted more than a 30% decline in its consolidated profit after tax (PAT) to INR 10.3 Cr in the March quarter (Q4) of the financial year 2023-24 (FY24) from INR 14.8 Cr in the December quarter, partially hurt by a sharp jump in spending towards inventories and employee benefits.

The startup had posted a net loss of INR 5.4 Cr in Q4 FY23.

Its operating revenue saw a 12.5% quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) increase to INR 102.3 Cr in the reported quarter. This was also an over 164% jump from INR 38.7 Cr operating revenue reported in Q4 FY23.

Founded in 2007 by Ankit Mehta, Ashish Bhat, Rahul Singh, Vipul Joshi, ideaForge is a drone manufacturing startup that makes UAV systems for inspection, surveillance and mapping. Its offering has utility in sectors such as defence, homeland security, mining, construction, agriculture, energy and utilities.

The startup was listed in June last year with a premium of 94% to its IPO price. Its IPO comprised an offer for sale (OFS) component of 48.7 Lakh shares and a fresh issue of shares worth INR 240 Cr. 

Meanwhile, spacetech sector is among the most burgeoning sectors in India with as many as 100 spacetech startups getting registered with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) last year. On the investment front, the sector garnered $233 Mn in funding across 30+ deals between 2014 and July 2023. 

According to Inc42’s Indian Spacetech Startup Landscape & Market Opportunity Report 2023, the spacetech sector is estimated to reach a market size of $77 Bn by 2030.

The post Drone Manufacturer ideaForge Expands ESOP Pool appeared first on Inc42 Media.

Decentralised finance (DeFi) startup Qiro Finance has secured $1.2 Mn (around INR 10 Cr) in its pre-seed funding round led by an Web3 accelerator Alliance. 

The round also saw participation from Escape Velocity, CMT Digital and entities like Trident Digital and Druid Ventures. 

The startups plans to use the fresh funds for its product development, scaling up its workforce and ecosystem expansion. 

Besides, it aims to launch mainnet (end product of a blockchain project) within the current year. 

Founded in 2023 by Akshay Poshatwar and Nishikant Bahalkar, Qiro Finance is an asset-backed decentralised financial lending platform. It focuses on building a decentralised credit protocol to connect emerging market asset originators (NBFIs) with global investors by leveraging blockchain and stablecoin rails. Qiro serves in the B2B space around wholesale lending. 

Stablecoins are a type of cryptocurrency whose value is tied to another asset class to keep a stable, steady value.

It aims to bridge the credit gap prevalent in emerging markets. This gap is attributed to the dominance of banks in the credit market and their risk-averse approach. 

“Real World Assets (RWAs) are gaining traction, signalling a noteworthy shift as traditional firms pursue alternative financing avenues embedded in crypto. This trend not only broadens global financing options but also fosters enhanced accessibility,” said Imran Khan, founder of Alliance.

This comes at a time when the Reserve Bank of India has been critical of cryptocurrency, saying they pose systemic risk to the financial systems. Besides, a 30% tax on cryptocurrency sales and 1% TDS on crypto transactions above INR 10,000 have also been imposed. 

Despite this, Bitcoin made a remarkable rally in March, hitting more than $73K in March 2024, soaring past its previous peak of almost $69K in November 2021. 

Following this, the overall market cap of the cryptocurrencies in circulation spiked to $2.5 Tn, falling just 10% short of its all-time high of $2.8 Tn. 

Not to mention, India now ranks among the top five countries in peer-to-peer (P2P) crypto trading and 75% of Indian users opting for centralised exchanges (CEXs) are aged below 35. 

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