[Weekly funding roundup Sept 23-29] Marginal rise in venture capital inflow

The last week of September saw a marginal rise in venture capital funding into Indian startups with the push coming in from a couple of decent-sized transactions.

The week saw total funding of $114 million cutting across 25 transactions. In comparison, the previous week saw a total funding of just $88 million.

The boost in funding came mainly from two transactions—Third Wave Coffee Roasters and Doceree that raised $35 million each—considered to be large-ticket deals given the present environment.

In all probability, the funding momentum for the remaining three months of the year is likely to be on similar lines. The only hope is that next year will see some positive surprises.

This week also saw certain other positive developments. Stockbroking platform Zerodha announced its financial results, and it is a classic example of a bootstrapped startup, which is highly profitable. In addition, the founders of Zerodha seem not to get carried away with this whole valuation game and are very realistic about expectations.

On the other hand, Saregama acquired a majority stake, about 51.8% shares for Rs 174 crore, in Pocket Aces. The company also plans to acquire another 41% stake in the next 15 months at pre-agreed multiples. This will go a long way in showing the path of getting the exits for the investors, which does not necessarily have to be through the public route.

At the same time, troubles at edtech unicorn BYJU'S never seem to be ending as it is likely to undertake another round of employee restructuring.

Key transactions

Speciality brand Third Wave Coffee raised $35 million in a Series C funding round led by Creaegis with participation from existing investors. The company will use the capital for country-wide expansion, bolstering its supply chain, enhancing capabilities, and investments in technology.

Healthtech startup Doceree raised $35 million from Creaegis, Eight Roads Ventures, and F-Prime Capital. It will utilise the capital to accelerate product and technology development and support expansion efforts to reshape communications to HCPs (healthcare professionals) across the globe.

D2C brand Pilgrim raised $20 million from Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India, Fireside Ventures, and Narotam Sekhsaria Family Office. The Mumbai-based company plans to use the funds to build its brand and bolster research and development and offline expansion within India.