Blinkit, B2B drive Eternal’s growth; Edtech firms eye US uni ties

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YourStory’s Tech30 has spotlighted over 300 breakout startups, facilitated 430-odd investor cheques, and has powered nearly $7 billion in cumulative valuations. From garage-stage ideas to category leaders to world-beating unicorns—Tech30 has seen it all.

Now, you can be a part of India’s most aspirational startup list at TechSparks 2025 by clicking here. Hurry, applications close on August 14!

Moving on, Tamil Nadu-based Milky Mist Dairy Food has filed a draft red herring prospectus with SEBI to raise up to Rs 2,035 crore through an IPO.

ICYMI: The nearly $4 trillion crypto market has recently seen a new wave of optimism, driven by a frenzy of Washington policy moves.

In other news, crypto exchange CoinDCX is looking for ethical hackers. The company has launched a ‘bug bounty programme’ following the $44.2 million cyberattack on its operational account, with an offer of up to 25% of the recovered assets or $11 million as a reward for anyone providing actionable information to recover the stolen funds.

Lastly, it turns out all the accumulated karma on Reddit might have a use after all. At least one fintech company in the US is reportedly looking for a “Professional Redditor” to plug its brand on the social media platform. Apart from writing in Reddit’s native voice, the candidates are also expected to “have thick skin and can handle Reddit’s critique culture.”

One wonders where this news will end up: #NotTheOnion or #LinkedInLunatics?

In today’s newsletter, we will talk about 

• Blinkit, B2B drive Eternal’s growth
• Edtech firms eye US uni ties
• Actor Rashmika Mandanna on nostalgia via scents

Here’s your trivia for today: Ljubljana is the capital of which country?

News

Blinkit, B2B drive Eternal’s growth

Zomato parent, Eternal, saw its operating revenue jump nearly 70% supported by strong growth in its Blinkit, food delivery, Hyperpure, and the going-out vertical, sending its shares up 7% on the NSE post-market close. It closed 7.5% higher at Rs 276.5 apiece. 

On Monday, the Deepinder Goyal-led company reported Rs 7,167 crore in operating revenue for Q1 FY26 compared with Rs 4,206 crore in the same period last year.

Q-com boom:

• Zomato, the company’s core food delivery business, clocked a sluggish 10% sequential growth in gross order value, as well as a 16% annual growth to Rs 10,769 crore. Blinkit overtook food delivery for the first time with a GOV of Rs 11,821 crore, up 140% year-over-year. 
• Eternal also incorporated a subsidiary, Blinkit Foods, with a proposed authorised share capital of Rs 1 crore. Blinkit Foods is expected to engage in the business of providing food services, including innovation, preparation, sourcing, sale and food delivery to customers.
• Blinkit also expects its transition to a complete inventory ownership model to yield a 1% point margin expansion over time, as well as operational efficiency for its brands. 

Funding Alert

Startup: EduFund

Amount: $6M

Round: Series A

Startup: Hudle

Amount: $2.5M

Round: Series A

Startup: ANNY

Amount: Rs 10 Cr

Round: Pre-Series A

Edtech

Edtech firms eye US uni ties

International student enrolment in the US fell by 11.3% between March 2024 and March 2025, dropping from 1.15 million to just over 1.02 million. According to estimates, based on an average cost of $30,000 per student for tuition and living expenses, this dip could potentially cost US institutions up to $4 billion in revenue over a year.

Even as US universities grapple with tighter visa rules, scrutiny and uncertainty over enrolling international students on campus, edtech platforms such as Eruditus, upGrad, Simplilearn, and Great Learning are keen to seize the opportunity and deepen existing ties with American universities and also establish new ones.

International partnerships: 

• In such partnerships, edtech firms provide digital infrastructure, marketing, student-recruitment expertise, programme administration, and institutional design for online delivery. Universities bring in accredited curricula, faculty expertise, brand reputation, and authority to confer recognised qualifications.
• In the fiscal year ending March 2025, upGrad recorded a 30% increase in enrollments into US university programmes, compared to the previous fiscal year. Meanwhile, Great Learning has introduced several new programmes in the last six months, some with new partners and some with existing ones.
• Industry observers believe that US universities cannot afford a decline in student enrollment and must explore all ways to woo students from across the world. Online and hybrid partnerships help institutions reach students where they are and also allow them to deploy their resources more efficiently. 

Interview

Actor Rashmika Mandanna on nostalgia via scents

Fragrance tends to evoke evergreen memories and emotions. It’s this intimate relationship between scent and the self that actor Rashmika Mandanna seeks to explore through Dear Diary, a fragrance brand that aims to blend nostalgia with narrative.

Despite their universal appeal, the scents are anchored in Mandanna’s South Indian roots. From jasmine and pink lotus to sugarcane, the ingredients are a tribute to the places and emotions that shaped her.

News & updates

• Cyberattack: The US federal government and cybersecurity researchers say a newly discovered security bug found in Microsoft’s SharePoint is under attack. US cybersecurity agency CISA sounded the alarm this weekend that hackers were actively exploiting the bug.
• Jet set, go: An investment group led by LVMH’s private equity arm is buying 20% of private jet company Flexjet, marking the latest push by the luxury industry to expand into travel.
• Crypto: A team of crypto-native researchers and public market experts is preparing to launch what it calls the largest yield-bearing Ether fund targeting institutional investors. The company, called Ether Machine, plans to create a publicly traded vehicle offering institutional-grade exposure to Ethereum infrastructure and Ether yield, it announced on Monday.

Ljubljana is the capital of which country?

Answer: Slovenia.

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