Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (November 12, 2021)

SoftBank says could invest another $5-10B in India in 2022 if it finds right cos

SoftBank, which is among the prominent investors in the Indian tech startup ecosystem, could invest another $5-10 billion in the country in 2022 if it finds the right companies at the right valuation, according to SoftBank Investment Advisers CEO Rajeev Misra.

Speaking at Bloomberg's sixth 'India Economic Forum 2021', Misra said SoftBank had been investing in India for over a decade, and has pumped in roughly $14 billion over the past six years.

Covaxin 77.8 pc effective against COVID-19: Lancet study

Bharat Biotech's vaccine Covaxin has demonstrated that it is 77.8 percent effective against symptomatic COVID-19, through evaluation of 130 confirmed cases, with 24 observed in the vaccine group versus 106 in the placebo group, Phase III data published in The Lancet said on Friday.

The efficacy analysis further demonstrated that Covaxin to be 93.4 percent effective against severe symptomatic Covid.

Reliance Retail acquires lingerie brand amante from MAS Holdings

Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) has acquired retail lingerie businesses under the 'amante' umbrella brand from MAS Brands, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sri Lanka-based MAS Holdings, for an undisclosed amount.

The 'amante business', which was established by MAS in 2007, is engaged in retail and wholesale distribution of premium lingerie under brands 'amante', 'Ultimo' and 'every de by amante'.

The products are sold through company-owned stores and multi-brand outlets, as well as through its ecommerce channels across India and Sri Lanka.

Edtech startup Coding Invaders by MentorsPro raises $700K in pre-seed round (Funding)

Coding Invaders by MentorsPro, an education platform with mentorship that is working to make job-ready education available and approachable for students, has raised $700 000 in its pre-seed funding round from investors like S16VC and A Partners.

The company is planning to grow by $1 million monthly revenue in the next six months and educate 1,500 more students. In the next five years, the startup also plans to help one million people with finding a new job in IT by using job-ready skills, provided by Coding Invaders.

Exampur raises undisclosed amount in pre-Series A round

Mass edtech platform focused on test prep for government jobs, Exampur, has raised an undisclosed amount in pre-Series A round of funding from a consortium of angel investors based in Singapore. The investors include executives from Coca-Cola, Vivendi, Citibank, Qualcomm and Interpublic Group.

The startup will utilise the capital to expand its services portfolio by adding new exam segments and other Indian languages, said the company in a statement.

“Competitive exams are the only real gateway for the vast majority of mass aspirations. Exampur sits right at the cusp of those aspirations, the bounties that technology brings and result-oriented quality. This is truly a business for a Centicorn," said Prashant Kumar, Founder of Entropia and former Asia CEO of Interpublic Group who led the round.