Startup funding and news updates: daily roundup (September 9, 2022)

Kotak Securities acquires FundExpert

Kotak Securities has bought FundExpert, a Bangalore-headquartered fintech startup through its Startup Investments and Partnerships Team for an undisclosed value.

Founded in 2020 by Anuraag Saboo and Amit Sharda, FundExpert's focus is on offering affordable digital multi-asset wealth management platform solutions to Independent Financial Advisors (IFA’s) and mutual fund distributors across the country. Currently, more than 2,300 distributors use FundExpert platform to manage Mutual Fund portfolios of more than 15,000 crores.

Jaideep Hansraj, MD & Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Kotak Securities Limited said, “Our strategy to acquire the assets of Fundexpert is to provide a tech-led one stop shop for independent financial advisors and mutual fund distributors in India. Distributors will be able to manage their mutual funds, equity, and other financial products distribution seamlessly through this platform. This acquisition is part of our strategy in scaling IFA-led distribution business with the Kotak brand, our distribution network and vast experience in the financial services sector.”

Anveshan raises $2M in pre-series A round

Anveshan, a D2C health food brand has raised $2 million in a pre-series A round of funding led by DSG Consumer Partners, Force Ventures and We Founder Circle.

This round also saw participation from angel investors such as Amit Jain and Amit Hooja from Netgraph, Vardhman Group, Rahul Sharma from Zetwerk and others.

The company will use this fresh capital to hire talent, standardise operational processes and R&D of existing as well as new product categories. It plans to expand its reach in the premium retail stores of Mumbai, Delhi NCR, and Bengaluru. The brand works to deploy tech solutions to become transparent, traceable and quality controlled at every step of the supply chain.

Flipkart unveils news features on its app

E-commerce firm Flipkart has introduced a host of new features on its app in lieu of the forthcoming festive season. According to Flipkart, the revamped experience has higher thrust on visual design, ease of navigation, easy discoverability of deals and products, and an immersive and interactive experience with live commerce.

The new features introduced on the app include - Brand Mall Mode which will is implemented for online shoppers looking to buy premium products with easier discoverability. Under the new Image search feature, users can take a screenshot of the outfit or item they are looking for and upload the same on the app by clicking on the ‘Camera’ icon. The search engine will then look for either exact or similar products to it. Live commerce will enable users to discover new products and learn about them in detail through influencer-led interactive video content. Virtual try-on is a feature where users can opt for it by uploading a selfie to see how a product would look on them virtually.

Telangana govt partners with AWS for cloud migration

The government of Telangana is working with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to advance its Cloud Adoption Framework to bring about speed, scale, quality, and efficiency of citizen service delivery for its 40 million residents.

The Telangana government is migrating information technology (IT) workloads to the cloud to accelerate its e-Governance plans to deliver faster and more reliable citizen services through its 33 departments and 289 organisations. This is expected to result in higher operational efficiency and reduced IT costs.

The Aarogyasri Health Care Trust (Aarogyasri), the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), and the Telangana State Department of Information Technology, Electronics, and Communications (ITE&C) are the first state organizations to migrate workloads from on premises to AWS.

Dukaan and ShareChat form partnership for live commerce

Dukaan, an ecommerce enabler, and social media company ShareChat have entered into a strategic partnership for live commerce related activity. Under this partnership, Dukaan will enable merchants on its platform to collaborate with creators present on ShareChat and Moj to promote their products through video and live content.

Launching first on Moj this month, this partnership will enable small and medium businesses on Dukaan, present across different regions of India, to promote their products and services with the help of regional creators who have a strong influence among their audience. These businesses will buy other sales channel to grow their presence beyond Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and ads on social media. This partnership will also give creators on Moj and Sharechat monetization opportunities making video and live commerce a sustainable revenue stream.

Simplilearn Launches study abroad MS in artificial intelligence

Simplilearn in a partnership with IU International University of Applied Sciences (IU), Germany has introduced a two-year international master of science (MS) in artificial intelligence (AI) program. Through this partnership, students are offered a dual degree in association with London South Bank University. The program affords learners the opportunity to study abroad in Germany for one semester (6 months) during the 24-month program. It further provides learners the eligibility to apply for a Post Study Work (PSW) Visa after completing the course.

The master of science in AI is the latest addition in this partnership that already provides dual-degree MBA programmes and will be extended to other programmes in the coming months. Students with a bachelor’s degree with a minimum of 50 percent marks, proof of English as a medium of instruction, and at least one year of professional work experience are eligible to pursue this program.

iThink Logistics to offer cross-border shipping services

iThink Logistics has announced the launch of its international shipping services portal. iThink Logistics International will enable SMEs and Direct to Consumer (D2C) brands to expand and grow ecommerce sales to global markets.

International cross-border shipping from India is projected to reach $129 Billion by 2025. The iThink Logistics’ International shipping platform will also provide e-commerce sellers with integration with all major market places such as Amazon, eBay, Etsy, and others. The services will include same day pick up, benchmark transit times, e-commerce-centric commercial customs clearance; real-time tracking updates in both the country of origin and the country of destination. This service is available for now in Jaipur and Surat and will be soon be extended to 20 more cities by September 2022.