Startup news and updates: daily roundup (December 7 2022)
YourStory presents daily news roundups from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Wednesday, December 7, 2022.
MSME-powered startup Lal10 records Rs 200 Cr revenue run rate, grows 12x in 3 quarters
On its way to digitising Indian textile based MSMEs for global B2B wholesale, said it recorded a revenue run rate of over Rs 200 crore.
The startup said it grew over 12x in the past nine months alone, and is progressing towards rapid growth in the next few quarters. This run rate comes on the heels of its expanding number of mid-to-large format buyers in countries like the US, the UK, Japan, and the Middle East.
To cater to the rising demand, Lal10 has also launched seven satellite offices in cities/ towns which are at the ground zero of manufacturing. It is eyeing a $100M run-rate within the next 12 months.
Along with the increase in revenue, the company has digitised and given a globally relevant makeover to over 2,200 Indian MSMEs with an aim to onboard another 12,500 MSMEs over the next three years.
Lal10 had earlier raised $5.5 million in its pre-Series A round with participation from Xander Group, Spiral Ventures, Singularity Ventures, and Beyond Capital Ventures along with notable angels like Nitish Mittersain, Amit Ranjan, Mekin Maheshwari of Notion India, to name a few.
RFPIO appoints DocuSign, Google, and Seismic Alumnus as CMO
, a response management platform, has appointed Michael Londgren as its chief marketing officer (CMO). Michael is a technology marketing leader with deep executive experience scaling hyper growth businesses including DocuSign, Google G Suite (now Workspace), and Seismic.
According to the company statement, in his new role, Michael will help shape the company’s overall growth strategy, foster deep company cross-functional and customer-centric alignment, and guide RFPIO’s marketing functions.
Recently, Michael served as the CMO at Seismic where he spearheaded its category leadership in sales enablement while partnering with the sales and product teams to drive increased revenue and bring innovation to the forefront.
Previously, he worked at Google Cloud where he led marketing for G Suite and helped accelerate G Suite’s growth into enterprises. Prior to Google, Michael served as a VP of product marketing and then customer enablement at DocuSign where he helped the company grow from 180 to 2,500 employees and emerge as the eSignature category leader.
Spice Money appoints Mrutyunjay Mahapatra and Veena Mankar as Board members
Rural fintech , a subsidiary of DiGiSPICE Technologies, has appointed Mrutyunjay Mahapatra and Veena Mankar as new board members.
Mruntyunjay and Veena will enable Spice Money to be at the forefront of the rural fintech revolution, bringing digital financial accessibility to India’s unbanked and underserved population.
Mrutyunjay Mahapatra is a veteran in the Indian banking and financial technology sector. Previously, he was the deputy managing director of SBI and oversaw worldwide strategy, marketing, new business, digital, analytics, and IT activities.
With four decades of experience in banking and financial services, Veena Mankar is a seasoned professional. Her expertise includes financial inclusion, financing for MSMEs, and trade finance. She has been associated with prestigious financial organisations from India and overseas such as West LB Germany, Emirates Bank International, Dubai, and FIM Bank Malta through her career.
Perpetuity Capital teams up with 3ev Industries & 3eco Systems
, an NBFC focused on financing cleantech mobility, has entered into an agreement to finance electric three-wheeler cargo vehicles of 3ev Industries that will be owned and operated by 3eco Systems for last mile logistics.
Founded in 2019 in Bengaluru, 3ev Industries manufactures the largest range of category L5 3W EVs including Passenger (L5M), Cargo vehicles (L5N), ICE-EV conversions, all ICAT, ARAI Certified & RTO registered.
3eco Systems was founded in September 2020 to provide comprehensive solutions for hyper-local connectivity using an all-EV platform in India’s Tier I and II cities. It currently operates in five cities--Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Coimbatore, and Mumbai, and will reach 13 cities by the end of 2023.
ISRO and Social Alpha Sign MoU to Establish SpaceTech Innovation Platform
(ISRO) and have signed an MoU to launch SpaceTech Innovation Network (SpIN), India’s first dedicated platform for innovation curation and venture development for the burgeoning space entrepreneurial ecosystem.
A one-of-its-kind public-private collaboration for startups and SMEs in the space industry, this novel partnership is a significant step forward in providing further stimulus to India’s recent space reform policies and will work towards identifying and unleashing the market potential of the most promising space tech innovators and entrepreneurs in India.
SpIN will primarily focus on facilitating spacetech entrepreneurs in three distinct innovation categories: Geospatial Technologies and Downstream Applications; Enabling Technologies for Space & Mobility; and Aerospace Materials, Sensors, and Avionics.
"I wish the SpIN platform would create a level playing field for various stakeholders to collaborate and contribute to the space ecosystem in the country," says S Somanath, Chairman, ISRO.
“At Social Alpha, we have stayed committed to our goal of bringing breakthrough innovations to the social sector with applications across climate, health, and livelihoods, and this partnership with ISRO will significantly strengthen our ability to create impact,” said Manoj Kumar, Founder, Social Alpha.
The Quorum to expand to Hyderabad
The Quorum, members-only work & social lifestyle club, is planning to launch in Hyderabad by mid-2023, adding a third club to its network.
Having cemented its position in Gurugram and Mumbai as a hub for community, culture, and work for the global Indian citizen, the brand is now poised to extend its offerings to the city of Hyderabad.
Speaking about the upcoming launch, Vivek Narain, Founder & CEO of The Quorum, said, “With this addition to our club network, members of The Quorum will soon have seamless access to three clubs. Our aim is to build a community of relevant and accomplished patrons across three more locations by 2026, and our expansion into Hyderabad is a stepping-stone towards this goal. The Q, with its growing footprint, is creating a meaningful ecosystem that is shaping the culture of our times.”
UK-based fintech Tide launches in India
Tide, the UK’s leading SME-focused business financial platform, has launched its app in India. The business financial platform has introduced two business banking solutions–the Tide Business Account and its RuPay-powered Tide Expense Card.
Tide aims to on-board half a million SMEs in India over the next 24 months. The Tide Business Account and Tide Expense Card in partnership with Transcorp (a RBI regulated PPI issuer), will track spending and business expenses, enable transactions at all merchants that accept RuPay, and together help small businesses save time and money.
SMEs who sign up for the Tide Business Account will have access to contactless services, and can use the free of cost Tide Expense Card to withdraw cash, for in-store purchases (including contactless tap and pay), ecommerce purchases and other payments.
Dr. Oliver Prill, CEO, Tide, said, “We are delighted to be launching this product in India, Tide’s first international market. India’s 64 million SMEs are the backbone of its economy, providing vital services, jobs and growth. We believe there is a vast untapped segment of small businesses in India that hasn’t been formally accounted for. We, at Tide, are committed to introducing and including a large segment of this market into the formal economy.”
Yubi launches fixed income platform
Yubi, a credit platform for lenders and corporates, has launched a fixed income platform--Yubi Invest, designed for wealth management firms and financial advisors. The platform simplifies fixed-income transactions in a unified and streamlined manner for better investor experience.
The platform allows users to onboard themselves, add their team members and customers with ease. They will be able to discover the most diverse set of fixed-income instruments that cover a wide range of industries and ratings. The investor can even customise these based on their preferences. Additionally, wealth managers and advisors can access several bond options, make real-time offers for issuances of interest, make allocations, and track all investments made, securely and transparently.
Commenting on the platform launch, Moulik Patel, Chief Business Officer of Yubi Invest, said, "The current economic climate has provided headwinds to bolster fixed income securities. With SEBI reducing the face value of privately placed debt securities to Rs 1 lakh and encouraging retail participation, this sector is on the verge of a necessary revolution.
"To further strengthen and enable this mission, we have introduced a one-of-a-kind platform that allows wealth management firms and financial advisors to bring the power of fixed income to the larger investor community."
(This article will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)
