[Weekly funding roundup Sept 7-13] Debt shows highest traction this week

The month of September continued to remain modest in terms of venture capital (VC) inflow, and this week saw the debt component getting highest traction.

The total VC funding for the second week of the month came in at $242 million cutting across 23 deals. In contrast, the previous week saw a total amount of $208 million.

This week saw a boost in funding with the $100 million infusion into InMobi through the debt route. The adtech company plans to use this funding to drive its AI capability and there are reports that it is looking at an initial public offering (IPO).

These past two weeks reveal that VC funding has come into its familiar territory of $200 million range and there were no large deals which were reported. Though, at the same time, the Indian startup ecosystem continues to witness active funding discussions.

There has been an uneven VC inflow into the Indian startup ecosystem, and it is likely that this trend may persist for the remainder of the year. Though there is hope that any decision by the US Fed to lower interest rates will lift investor sentiments.

The Indian startup ecosystem continues to witness heightened activity on the IPO front, with Swiggy announcing that it has expanded the size of its issue, while Ather has filed its draft papers with SEBI. This is a very welcome development for both startup founders and investors.

Key transactions

MSME financing platform FlexiLoans raised Rs 290 crore ($34.5 million) from Accion, Fundamentum, Nuveen and Maj Invest.

Wealth management startup Centricity raised $20 million from Lightspeed and Burman Family Office.

Home decor and lifestyle brand Nestasia raised $8.35 million from Susquehanna Asia VC, Stellaris Venture Partners, and angel investors.

EV startup Clean Electric raised Rs 48.5 crore ($5.7 million) from Info Edge, Pi Ventures, and Kalaari Capital.