Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (October 30, 2023)

Funding

Nikhil Kamath invests in Sharan Hegde’s The 1% Club

The 1% Club, has secured Rs 10 crore in Pre-Series A funding from Gruhas, a venture capital firm co-founded by Nikhil Kamath (from Zerodha) and Abhijeet Pai (from Puzzolana Group).

The investment will be used to grow the startup’s operations and attract industry-leading talent. 

“The 1% Club represents a unique fusion of finance and community, a combination that can transform how individuals approach wealth creation and financial management. I believe in the potential of this platform to redefine the future of fintech and edtech,” Kamath said.

The startup is poised to transition from primarily focusing on edtech to becoming a platform that combines both fintech and edtech. It is in the advanced stages of seeking registration with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

Founded by Sharan Hegde and Raghav Gupta, The 1% Club is a members-only platform dedicated to empowering individuals with the knowledge, tools, and mindset for achieving financial independence and early retirement.

Funstop Games raises $1.5M in seed funding from InfoEdge Ventures

Casual gaming studio Funstop Games has raised $1.5 million in a seed funding round from InfoEdge Ventures.

The investment will be channelled into the development of intellectual properties with extended revenue streams, according to Funstop Games Co-founder Prashanth Vijay.

The Gurgaon-based gaming studio intends to expand its game development initiatives and invest in enhancing ad tech capabilities, further strengthening its existing games portfolio.

Founded by Vijay, and Tamesh Sharma, Funstop Games has produced popular game titles, amassing over 50 million downloads and generating revenues exceeding $4 million.

Sweet Karam Coffee raises $1.5M in funding from Fireside Ventures

Sweet Karam Coffee, a Chennai-based destination South Indian snacking brand, has raised $1.5 million in funding from Fireside Ventures. 

The company plans to utilise the funds raised for offline expansion, penetrating across new geographics and strengthening its regionalised product portfolio.

“The opportunity for a well-packaged South Indian snacking brand, made with clean ingredients (no palm oil, no preservatives) and available widely, is enormous- both within India and overseas,” VS Kannan Sitaram, Partner and Co-founder of Fireside Ventures, said.

Founded by Anand Bharadwaj, Nalini Parthiban, Srivatsan Sundararaman, and Veera Raghavan, Sweet Karam Coffee aims to tackle two major issues in South Indian snacking: the scarcity of well-packaged, preservative-free traditional sweets and snacks and the rising preference for Western snacks among the younger generation.

It has a wide range of delicacies from Tamil Nadu and Kerala and soon plans to expand its portfolio of Karnataka & Andhra specialities. It delivers across India and to 32 countries.

India Accelerator’s iAngels network invests in Fruitfal

India Accelerator and its affiliated iAngels network have made investments in Fruitfal, a predictive AI demand forecasting B2B agri sourcing platform catering to fresh and processed products.

The funds will enable Fruitfal to expand and enhance its technology platform and unique model to address the growing customer demand in Tier II and Tier III cities across India.

“Fruitfal has been selected...given its innovative solution in the global agritech sourcing marketplace. The company has had phenomenal success so far in this domain,” Deepak Nagpal, Managing Partner of India Accelerator, said.

The agritech company is committed to developing cutting-edge cloud and mobile technologies aimed at simplifying the fragmented agricultural value chains, and ensuring reliable sourcing for the Indian market.

Other news

Astrotalk appoints Anmol Jain as new co-founder

Astrotech startup AstroTalk has promoted Anmol Jain from Chief Business Officer to Co-founder. In his new role, Jain will oversee the company's product, finance, operations, and lead initiatives for international expansion, strategic acquisitions, and team growth.

Jain joined Astrotalk in 2021 as the CBO and, under his leadership, the company successfully recruited top astrologers, expanded the team size from 50 to 180, and streamlined costs related to tech infrastructure, the startup noted.

Founded in 2017, Astrotalk is a bootstrapped tech company in the online astrology sector. It is expanding into international markets such as Canada, the US, New Zealand, and the EU, expecting 100% growth in these areas.

E-Gaming Federation appoints Anuraag Saxena as new CEO

The E-Gaming Federation (EGF), representing leading online skill gaming operators in India, has named Anuraag Saxena as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective from November 1.

In his new role, Saxena will oversee the management and policy advocacy efforts at EGF, collaborating closely with the organisation’s member stakeholders to establish a secure, responsible, equitable, and transparent environment for the online skill gaming industry.

With over two decades of experience, he has held senior management and advisory positions with organisations such as GE Capital, Prudential Assurance, Deutsche Bank, and Credit Suisse.

In his prior positions, Anuraag co-founded the world's largest crowdsourced heritage-recovery platform and facilitated the collaboration between the 'World Toilet Summit' and the Swacch Bharat initiative in India, working in partnership with the World Toilet Organization, various multilateral agencies, and the Government of India.

EGF, a not-for-profit organisation founded under the Societies Regulation Act, self-regulates the Indian e-gaming sector to protect consumer interests. 

Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan launch Femi9

Actor Nayanthara, director Vignesh Shivan, and Dr Gomathi have launched Femi9, a venture addressing hygiene and period protection for women.

Femi9’s products include daily wear pads for women. The natural, comfortable, and breathable pads are made by women for women and offer complete period protection. The Femi9 website will launch after 30 days.

Going beyond the products on the shelves, Femi9 is also aiming to evolve as a thriving community of women where health and wellness tips are shared through various social media and digital platforms regularly.

Nayanthara and Vignesh are also the founders of 9Skin, along with serial entrepreneur Daisy Morgan. The brand aims to bring about a transformation in skincare, with a fresh perspective on self-care and beauty.

iThink Logistics, FedEx partner for cross-border ecomm shipping in India

iThink Logistics has announced a strategic partnership with FedEx to redefine the cross-border ecommerce landscape in India by offering seamless shipping solutions and cost savings to ecommerce sellers venturing into international markets.

The collaboration enables sellers to effortlessly create their own FedEx accounts with just one click, streamlining the process. Sellers get access to discounts of up to 76% on key FedEx services.

The partnership also offers a seamless API integration option, enabling sellers to sync their FedEx accounts with iThink Logistics' SAAS platform, allowing them to access negotiated pricing, leverage express services, and monitor all their shipping accounts from a unified dashboard.

The collaboration between iThink Logistics and FedEx addresses international shipping challenges for small and medium-sized ecommerce businesses by combining FedEx’s transportation network with ITL’s SAAS solution.

Giottus announces zero-fee trades for all customers

Crypto investment platform has introduced zero-fee crypto trades for all customers, applying to all 200+ crypto-INR pairs on the platform.

This move is expected to enable Indian crypto traders and investors to plan their trades with ease and, in turn, improve their profitability, the crypto platform said, adding that this will also improve liquidity on trading pairs.

Giottus, with over a million users, is an all-in-one crypto investment platform. Investors can buy and sell crypto assets on Giottus in multiple languages including Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Bengali.

Eupheus Learning announces senior leadership transition

School-focused distribution platform Eupheus Learning has announced changes in senior leadership, including a division of responsibilities between the co-founders.

Amit Kapoor, one of the co-founders and directors on the Board, has assumed the position of the company's Chief Executive Officer, while Ved Prakash Khatri now serves as the Chief Operating Officer.

This change followed the retirement of Sarvesh Shrivastava, the Founder and Managing Director, who now serves as a Non-Executive Director on the Board, offering guidance and support.

With this shift in senior management, Eupheus is set to advance its vision to expand this year, aiming to cover over 30,000 private schools in India and establish a user base of more than 11,000 schools by March 2024.

(This article will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)