SOSV inducts Indian startups Stack Finance, Kiko TV into its MOX 10 cohort

Mumbai-based Kiko TV (live video commerce) and Bengaluru-based Stack Finance (smart personal finance app) have been selected for the MOX 10 cohort, global venture capital firm SOSV said on Monday.

MOX 10 cohort has chosen 10 startups from countries, including India, Pakistan, Singapore, and Hong Kong. These startups are provided about $150,000 in investment besides a six-month intensive accelerator programme, which includes cross-border market entry and fundraising readiness.

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Speaking on the development, William Bao Bean, General Partner at SOSV, and Managing Director of Mobile Only Accelerator (MOX), said,

“India has transformed itself into a mobile-first consumer economy in 2020. As an investor, we’re seeing huge opportunities in healthcare, video content, entertainment, and hyperlocal services. Companies that launched and thrived during the pandemic are the most resilient ones, and the MOX 10 cohort has been the proof of that."

One of the startups from the cohort, Stack Finance, leverages AI and data analytics to empower millennials to make better financial decisions and improve their lifestyle, with access to hundreds of financial products.

Also part of the cohort is Kiko TV — India's first live-streaming commerce platform for an "assisted shopping" experience powered by AI. The Mumbai-based platform brings a lively, interactive, and entertaining native feel to the digital shopping experience of internet consumers.

SOSV is a multi-stage venture capital firm that operates startup accelerator investment programmes. At the end of 2020, SOSV had over 1,000 portfolio companies and $855 million in assets under management.

SOSV has invested in over 40 Indian companies in the last three year, mainly through its MOX programme, which counts among its Indian portfolio healthtech platform Phable (latest funding round: $12 million); Samsung-backed video publisher network Flickstree ($3 million); social commerce app Woovly ($2.5 million); and publishing platform Pencil ($1 million). 

Google estimates that out of 650 million internet users in India, 70 percent are bypassing desktops and using smartphones, thereby becoming mobile-first and mobile-only users, half of whom live in Tier II and beyond cities.