Startup news and updates: daily roundup (April 12, 2021)

Flipkart joins hands with Adani Group to set up logistics and data centres

India’s leading ecommerce marketplace Flipkart has entered into a partnership with industrial conglomerate Adani Group to create logistic and data centres with the promise of creating thousands of new jobs. As part of this partnership, Adani Logistics Limited, a subsidiary of the Group, will construct a 534,000 sq. ft. fulfilment centre in its upcoming logistics hub in Mumbai that will be leased to Flipkart to address the growing demand for ecommerce in Western India and support market access of several thousands of sellers and MSMEs in the region, according to a statement from the ecommerce company.

Nykaa acquires online jewellery brand Pipa Bella

Nykaa Fashion has acquired online jewellery brand Pipa Bella. Nykaa stated that with this acquisition it aims to capture and expand into the jewellery segment with a focus on fashion jewellery and accessories. The terms of the deal were undisclosed. Pipa Bella will continue to offer its services on its own website and also extend this functionality as a consumer brand under the Nykaa Fashion portfolio.

Edtech startup LearnVern raises $1M from undisclosed investors (Funding)

Ahmedabad-based edtech platform LearnVern has raised funding of over $1 million from undisclosed international investors.  Launched in January 2020 by husband-wife duo Niral Modi and Aditi Modi, LearnVern is an online learning platform that offers job-oriented courses in vernacular languages.  The startup claims to have more than 5.5 lakh students registered on LearnVern platforms to learn about 37 different courses spanning across software development, IT, graphic design, mechanical engineering, civil engineering, digital marketing etc taught in languages like Hindi and Bangla.

Infosys share price hits 52-week high following announcement of share buyback

The share price of Infosys hit a 52-week high as the company announced a share buyback programme, and the IT company said it would consider the proposal during its board meeting on April 14. In a notice to the stock exchanges, Infosys said, “The board of the company will consider a proposal for buyback of fully paid-up equity shares of the company at its meeting to be held on April 14, in accordance with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Buy-back of Securities) Regulations, 2018.” In anticipation to the proposed buyback, the share price of Infosys rose by two percent in early Monday morning trade to touch a 52-week high of Rs 1,480.

Samunnati acquires FPO-centric agri supply chain platform Kamatan

Samunnati, an agri value chain enabler, on Monday announced the acquisition of farmer-centric agri supply chain platform, Kamatan. Recognising the impact a technology-led approach to agriculture can create, Samunnati has acquired Kamatan to bring the last-mile benefits of digitalisation to FPOs and agri enterprises. Further, Kamatan’s expertise in agricultural institution building, farming best practices, farmer collectives, distribution, logistics and technology coupled with Samunnati’s holistic solutions approach through Aggregation, Market Linkages and Advisory services (AMLA) is expected to help agri value chains operate at a higher equilibrium.

BharatPe hits record monthly UPI transactions in March

Fintech startup BharatPe processed $830 million-worth UPI transactions on the back of 106 million transactions in March — its highest ever — and retained the number three position in the UPI person-to-merchant category. BharatPe said the 7x growth in the volume of UPI transactions from April 2020 to March 2021 was led by increased adoption of digital payments across lower-tier cities and towns, as well as customers moving to safer and more convenient modes of transactions, against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic.

India to get third COVID-19 vaccine as Russia’s Sputnik V receives experts’ nod

According to media reports, DCGI's Subject Expert Committee (SEC) has recommended Russia’s coronavirus vaccine Sputnik V for emergency use. Post expert recommendation, the vaccine will now need approval from DCGI for its emergency use in India. If approved, Sputnik V will become the third COVID-19 vaccine to be used for inoculations in India after Serum Institute of India’s Covishield and Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin.  

Amazon India to cover COVID-19 vaccine cost for over 10 lakh people, including employees and sellers

Amazon on Monday said it will cover the COVID-19 vaccination cost for all its India employees and associates as well as those in the partner network ecosystem. This would include delivery service partner associates, including Amazon Flex drivers, 'I Have Space' store partners, trucking partners, and their eligible dependents, a statement said.

Uber to support COVID-19 vaccination by providing free rides worth Rs 1 Cr to Karnataka government

Ride-hailing platform Uber on Monday announced its support for the third phase of India’s vaccination drive with free rides worth Rs 1 crore for the residents of Bengaluru. Uber stated that the free rides can be utilised by everyone eligible for vaccination, to travel to and from the nearest authorised vaccination centre. These free rides can be obtained through easily redeemable promo code — 10M21V.