Startup news and updates: daily roundup (August 4, 2021)

BharatPe joins unicorn club with $370M infusion led by Tiger Global at $2.85B valuation (Funding)

Fintech startup BharatPe has raised $370 million in Series E round led by Tiger Global at a post-money valuation of $2.85 billion to turn into a unicorn, i.e., private companies valued at $1 billion and above. This is the 19th unicorn from the Indian startup ecosystem for this year till now.

BYJU’S acquires AR startup Whodat; early investor Ideaspring Capital to exit

BYJU’S has acquired Bengaluru-based computer vision and AR startup Whodat for an undiscloed sum. Whodat's early investor Ideaspring Capital, which had put in $600,000 in the company at the seed stage, will fully exit following the transaction.

BYJU'S is set to take ownership of Whodat's team and its proprietary computer vision platform to accelerate its new product development.

Whitehat Jr Founder Karan Bajaj exits BYJU'S after one year of acquisition

A year after BYJU'S acquired coding startup WhiteHat Jr for $300 million, its founder Karan Bajaj has decided to exit the edtech unicorn.

BYJU's acquisition of WhiteHat Jr was one of the biggest deals in the edtech space as it wanted to expand its presence in the US market. In fact, the unicorn was looking to provide coding programmes for kids — an area of expertise for WhiteHat Jr.

Sustainable footwear startup Neeman’s raises Rs 20 Cr in Series A round from Sixth Sense Ventures (Funding)

Hyderabad-based Neeman's an eco-conscious footwear brand on Wednesday announced that it raised Rs 20 crore (approximately $ 2.7 million) in a Series A round led by Sixth Sense Ventures.

The company will utilise the funds towards intensive product development, launching Neeman’s in international markets, expansion of categories and further strengthening their commitment to the planet.

Gamified wellness startup Revery raises $2M in pre-seed funding led by Sequoia’s Surge (Funding)

Gamified wellness startup Revery has raised $2 million in pre-seed funding led by Surge, a rapid scale-up programme by Sequoia Capital India for startups in India and Southeast Asia. Revery is in beta stealth and has plans to launch globally later this year, starting with a focus on the US market. 

Medical coworking startup Aartas CliniShare aims to make private practice easy for doctors

Launched by two doctors, medical coworking startup Aartas CliniShare space is ‘reinventing the doctor’s clinic’ by offering space, staff, and technology that ease administrative burdens. It has raised $5 million from QRG Holding and aims to grow to 100 smart multi-speciality clinics in India.

Bitcoin rewards startup GoSats raises $700k in seed round (Funding)

Bitcoin rewards company GoSats on Wednesday announced that it had raised $700,000 in a seed round from Alphabit Fund, Fulgur Ventures, Stacks Accelerator, and SBX Capital.

The round was also supported by a few angel investors, including Ajeet Khurana, former CEO of Zebpay; Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO of Unocoin; Mohit Madan, Co-Founder of Oropocket; Sharan Nair, CBO of Coinswitch Kuber; and others.

Social investment startup StockGro raises $5M in pre-Series A round (Funding)

StockGro, a Bengaluru-based social investment startup, has raised $5 million in a pre-Series A round of funding. The round was led by Roots Ventures and Velo Partners. The company will use the funding to grow its user base, hire tech talent, and build new features.

StockGro was founded in January 2020 by Ajay Lakhotia, former venture capitalist, with an aim to help people learn and participate in stock markets.

Healthcare startup Onsurity raises $16M in Series A round (Funding)

Onsurity, a tech startup that provides healthcare-related services aimed at SMEs and startups, has raised $16 million in a Series A round led by leading fintech investor Quona Capital, alongside existing investors Nexus Venture Partners.

Vernacular audio platform Khabri raises $2.1M in pre-Series A round (Funding)

Delhi-based vernacular audio platform Khabri has raised $2.1 million in a pre-Series A funding round to strengthen its product and tech offerings that are aimed at empowering the next half a billion internet consumers.

Having spread its wings in the Hindi-speaking markets, the startup said future plans entail launching in multiple languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, etc, in the next two quarters.

The Souled Store raises Rs 75 Cr led by Elevation Capital (Funding)

Mumbai-based ecommerce D2C startup The Souled Store has raised Rs 75 crore in Series B funding led by Elevation Capital.

The Souled Store said it will use the capital for expanding its product portfolio on both licenced merchandise and casual wear, building better brand awareness and offline retail presence pan India, expanding their manufacturing capabilities, and focusing on recruiting activities.

Cold chain marketplace startup Celcius raises $500K from Mumbai Angels Network, Huddle, Lumis Partners, others (Funding)

Mumbai Angels Network, a startup investment platform for early-stage venture investments, along with Huddle, Lumis Partners, and other investors from Nigeria, Malaysia, and the US, has invested $500,000 in Celcius, a cold chain marketplace startup, as a part of its seed round of funding.

Indian Bank signs MoU with SINE, IIT-Bombay, to fund MSMEs, startups

Indian Bank has signed an MoU with Society for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (SINE), IIT Bombay, for extending exclusive credit facility to startups and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).

The initiative was part of the bank's 'Ind Spring Board for financing Start-ups' scheme to empower the MSMEs and startups to realise their efforts, powered by financial support from the bank and backed by incubation facilities offered by SINE, IIT Bombay.

Tokyo 2020: Boxer Lovlina ends with bronze medal at Olympics

Indian boxer Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) signed off with a bronze medal in the Olympic Games after a comprehensive 0-5 loss to reigning world champion Busenaz Surmeneli, bringing an end to the country's campaign in the sport here.

Lovlina has become only the third Indian boxer to ensure a podium finish at the Olympics after Vijender Singh (2008) and MC Mary Kom (2012).

Apollo Hospital’s MitraClip implant saves 41-year-old waiting for heart transplant

Apollo Hospitals announced a successful MitraClip implant on a 41-year-old male farmer. The minimally invasive MitraClip procedure is effective in both functional and degenerative mitral regurgitation.

Short video app Lomotif eyes India launch in next 3 months

Singapore-based short video app Lomotif is all set to launch in India in the next two to three months, according to Founder and CEO Paul Yang.

Founded in 2014 by Paul, a media student from National University of Singapore, Lomotif lets users take any part of a video, such as a song, background, and voiceover, and incorporate it in their own video. 

Stride Ventures announces first close of Stride Ventures India Fund II

Venture lending fund Stride Ventures on Wednesday announced the first close of Stride Ventures India Fund II.

Stride Ventures has secured commitments of Rs 550 crore, out of its target corpus of Rs 1,000 crore, with an additional greenshoe option of Rs 875 crore.

The fund received approval for its Rs 1,875 crore plan from the Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) in June 2021.

AyuRythm raises undisclosed sum from SucSEED Indovation Fund, others (Funding)

Bengaluru-based wellness startup AyuRythm has secured an undisclosed amount in seed funding from SucSEED Indovation Fund and other several angel investors. 

AyuRythm is a hyper-personalised digital companion for holistic wellness, with a blend of modern technologies with ancient science of health assessment and care. Leveraging a 30 second pulse analysis (Nadi Pariksha) by placing fingers on smartphone cameras, AyuRythm aims to redefine holistic wellness via personalised recommendations based on an individual's mind, body, and metabolic imbalance. 

Huawei to invest $100M to boost startup ecosystem

Chinese telecom gear maker Huawei announced it will invest $100 million in the Asia-Pacific startup ecosystem over the next three years.

A senior official said that the company plans to expand Spark Programme to India after the COVID-19 pandemic eases in the country.