[Weekly funding roundup Aug 31-Sep 6] Venture capital inflow trends uneven

The month of September has begun on a modest note for the Indian startup ecosystem as venture capital funding dropped a few notches from the previous week, primarily due to the absence of large deals.

The first week of September saw total funding of $208 million cutting across 24 deals. In contrast, the previous week saw startups raising $447 million.

The week saw mobility startup Rapido entering the unicorn club after raising $200 million. However, there weren't many deals beyond that reported during the week.

VC funding does not show any definite trend in terms of a particular segment gaining a higher proportion of capital. The funding has been spread across various sectors.

The one common theme is that only well-managed startups have been able to raise capital in the current environment.

On the other hand, the public markets, i.e. stock exchanges, are turning out to be more exciting for Indian startups as Swiggy is in the final stages of coming out with its initial public offering. At the same time, Ather is also gearing up to become a public company, according to reports.

However, VC funding will continue to remain the main funnel that will back young startups. The present environment remains uncertain and the fund flow is expected to remain uneven for the remainder of the year.

Key transactions

Ride-hailing platform Rapido raised $200 million from WestBridge Capital, Nexus, Think Investments, and Invus Opportunities at a valuation of $1.1 billion.

Speciality coffee chain Blue Tokai Coffee raised $35 million from Verlinvest, Anicut Capital, and A91 Partners.

Sunsure Energy raised Rs 226 crore ($27 million approx.) from Tata Capital.

Justo Realfintech raised $7 million from Arbour Investments.

Sports nutrition retailer Nutrabay raised $5 million from RPSG Capital Ventures and Kotak Alternate Asset Managers.