Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (July 9, 2024)
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Tuesday, July 9, 2024.
Funding news
e-Procurement platform Centriti raises Rs 6 Cr
, a B2B SaaS e-procurement platform for the HoReCa (Hotel, Restaurant, and Catering) industry, has raised Rs 6 crore in a pre-Series A funding round led by Emergent India Ventures (EV2). The round saw participation from Atrium Angels, Alluvium Capital, Venture Garage, CoralBay Ventures, HOF, and Brigade Group.
Founded in 2022, Centriti offers a tech-based, end-to-end procurement system that centralises and simplifies the procurement process for HoReCa businesses.
Sustainability startup Ricron Panels raises Series A funding
Gujarat-based plastic waste recycling company raised an undisclosed Series A round led by Boon Sustainable Technologies. The round also saw participation from Harsh Mohunta (Managing Director, Classic Display Systems), Dinesh Babbar (ex-President at Infra.Market), Venkatesh Srinivasan (ex-Partner, EY GDS), Architect Renuka Sharma, and Kaushik Rajan (Founder, Stoicus Legal), and Veromint Advisors.
Founded by Rahul Chaudhary and Radhika Chaudhary, Ricron's patented technology transforms non-recyclable plastic waste into versatile, waterproof, rust-proof, fire-retardant, heat-resistant, termite-proof, and impact-resistant building materials, including roofing, framework shuttering, doors, panels, and storage pallets.
Felicity Games raises $700K in pre-seed round
, a casual game developer and publisher, has secured $700,000 in a pre-seed funding round from DeVC, Visceral Capital, and marquee angel investors, including Kunal Shah of CRED; former Nazara CEO, Manish Agarwal; Sriharsha Majety and Nandan Reddy of Swiggy; and Sameer Pittalwala, Head of Gaming, Google Cloud (APAC), among others.
Founded in 2023 by ex-Swiggy executive Anurag Choudhary, in under a year, Felicity has launched over 10 game titles, which more than a million monthly users play across 14 geographies. The company will use the funds towards testing 10 more such games by March 2025. It aims to scale its revenue by 10X by the end of this year.
Qarmatek raises $1M funding round
, a sustainability and circular economy-focused renewed electronics brand, raised $1 million in funding led by Umang Nahata and Rakesh Raman of Orange Orbit and Vishal Makwana of Texspin.
The capital will help Qarmatek expand into multiple categories in renewed electronics, scale operations, and grow geographically.
The investment aligns with Qarmatek’s mission to promote sustainability by extending the lifecycle of electronic products through renewal and refurbishment, thus reducing e-waste and contributing to a circular economy.
Helium raises pre-seed round
AI platform , which makes products for ecommerce websites to help them convert better, raised a pre-seed round of Rs 4.52 crore (about $550,000) led by Merak Ventures, a sector-agnostic early-stage venture capital (VC) firm, and angel investor Alok Mittal.
It will use the funding to build a high-performing team and further develop Helium's product offerings. The company aims to collaborate with top ecommerce brands globally, focusing on the North American market.
House of Biryan raises $2M to open more outlets
House of Biryan (HOB) has raised $2 million from Al Siraj Holdings, single family offices from Middle East, Angel Star Ventures—a US-based fund out of PA, and accredited HNISs from the US. With this round, $3 million has been raised in total; the majority of that money is being used to support growth in Mumbai and Delhi-NCR.
HOB is run by Mikhail and Mohammed, Michelin-trained chefs with 15 years of running various kitchens, and is supported by successful private equity investors who together own more than 20% of the company led by Mohit Goyal who has 12 years of experience with Carlyle and CVC capital.
Currently, the company has 12 kitchens between Mumbai and Delhi and will add another 30. The platform aims to serve 100,000 orders every month, crossing the Rs 100-crore ARR mark by December 2025.
Other news
Sify Technologies appoints Tom Bradicich to its board
, a Digital ICT solutions provider with global service capabilities spanning data centre, cloud, networks, security and digital services, appointed Tom Bradicich as a director on the Board of the company.
Bradicich previously served on several boards, including Aspen Technology (AZPN), a publicly traded industrial software company, and the advisory boards of SparkCognition, an AI software company, and a social media and silicon chip startup.
Mira Kapoor
Perfectly Average welcomes Mira Kapoor as brand ambassador
, a stackable jewellery and accessories brand, appointed Mira Kapoor as the face of the brand.
Founded in 2021 by Tarushi Chhabra, Palak Chhabra, and Vidhi Jhalani, Perfectly Average offers an array of jewellery pieces, including rings, bracelets, earrings, and necklaces, each intricately designed with 18K gold plating, CZ stones, moonstones, amethyst, pearls, and aventurine.
"Mira's embodiment of elegance, grace, and modern sensibility perfectly mirrors the core values that define our brand. Mira is not just a style icon but also a role model who resonates deeply with our mission to redefine luxury as inclusive and empowering. Her influential presence in the fashion world and her genuine appreciation for fine craftsmanship make her an ideal ambassador for Perfectly Average,” said Founder Tarushi Chhabra.
SIDBI, BluSmart flag-off 140+ electric cars for ride-hailing service
As part of the EV4ECO scheme for the electric mobility ecosystem, the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and EV ride-hailing company flagged off 140+ electric cars in the national capital on Tuesday.
SIDBI has also launched a tagline, ABCD (Aaओ Bनाए Cलीन Diल्ली), for increasing the EVs on Delhi roads.
Anmol Jaggi, Co-founder of BluSmart, said, “At BluSmart, our mission is to ‘Decarbonize Mobility at scale’ and SIDBI with its unique ABCD initiative supporting EVs is fuelling our growth in Delhi-NCR and helping in accelerating the adoption of EVs contributing to the reduction of carbon emissions from the transportation sector.”
F.I.R.S.T, IIT Kanpur signs MoU with ASEAN Economic Forum in Indonesia
The Foundation for Innovation and Research Support (F.I.R.S.T), IIT Kanpur signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Economic Forum, to strengthen the startup landscape across ASEAN nations. The signing ceremony took place at the India-ASEAN ScaleHub Programme 2024 held in Bali, Indonesia.
Professor Ankush Sharma, Professor In-charge of SIIC (F.I.R.S.T), IIT Kanpur; and Sachin Gopalan, Director of the ASEAN Economic Forum, signed the MoU during the programme. This collaboration aims to enhance access to technology, market opportunities, and valuable business connections for startups in ASEAN countries.
LightFury Games launches studio in India; strengthens leadership
has unveiled its first studio in Bengaluru. Alongside this milestone, the company announces a major enhancement of its leadership team, reinforcing its mission to produce high-calibre AAA titles with elite talent from India and the UK.
Justin Farren has been appointed as Chief Creative Officer for the India studio and will steer the creative vision and design strategies for the in-development games. Chong-U Lim joins as the Chief Technology Officer and will lead the R&D and technology development for all games. Daniel Hall has been named as Vice President of Engineering, overseeing gameplay engineering with a focus on performance, quality, and finesse.
LightFury Games Team
Earlier in May, LightFury raised 8.5 million in investment and the round was led by Blume and other prominent investors including MIXI, Gemba Capital, and Angels. With a strategic focus on mobile gaming initially, LightFury Games aims to transcend boundaries with its immersive gameplay and cutting-edge technology.
TrioTree Technologies appoints new COO and VP
Technologies, a leading provider of healthcare IT solutions, has appointed Divyesh J Sampat as Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Mihir Jha as Vice President of Technology and Innovations.
Divyesh J Sampat, the newly appointed COO, brings over 23 years of experience in operational leadership. His tenure at Wipro saw him driving operational efficiency and achieving sustainable growth, making him an invaluable addition to TrioTree’s executive team. Mihir Jha, the new VP of Technology and Innovations comes with 20 years of experience in technology management. His impressive background includes leading technological advancements and successfully launching several products and solutions.
FITPASS strengthens its senior leadership roles
, a fit-tech brand, has strengthened its marketing and growth engine capabilities by onboarding industry giants for senior leadership roles.
It appointed Abhinay Singh as the Vice President of Growth for FITPASS. With ten years of leadership experience, Singh previously led marketing and growth at Redcliffe Labs and Thyrocare Technologies.
The company has also appointed Neeraj Kumar, AVP of Digital Marketing, and Shaleen D'souza, AVP of Brand and Communication.
Kumar brings over 13 years of experience in digital strategy and marketing, having held key roles at Redcliffe Diagnostic and Healthians. On the other hand, D'souza, with over ten years of experience, has worked with branding agencies such as Vector Brand Solutions (Quotient Group) and Mirum (WPP Group).
This move is intended to boost the brand's market penetration and deliver more than a threefold increase in growth by 2024-2025.
(This copy will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)
Edited by Suman Singh
