[Weekly funding roundup Dec 7-13] VC inflow peaks again unexpectedly in December

Weekly venture capital (VC) funding into Indian startups peaked again this year in the second week of December, boosted by the deals of Rebel Foods and Mintifi.

The total weekly VC funding totalled $779 million cutting across 30 deals—the second-highest amount of weekly funding raised this year. This was a steep increase compared to the previous week where the figure was just $158 million.

The highest VC amount raised on a weekly basis for the year was $872 million in June when Zepto raised a massive $665 million.

The development this week was also surprising as the end of the year is generally considered a lean period for fundraising. However, this period also saw a sizable number of transactions in the $40-million range, which brought the overall funding amount.

This week, the Indian startup ecosystem saw transactions across all stages of funding. These show that the year will close on a high note and sets the stage for an optimistic 2025.

At the same time, there were also positive developments in the Indian startup ecosystem, especially with companies taking the public route. Fintech company Mobikwik got a very strong response for its IPO issue while Bluestone has filed its documents.

Key transactions

Cloud kitchen operator Rebel Foods raised $210 million from Temasek and Evolvence.

Fintech startup Mintifi raised $180 million from Teachers’ Venture Growth (TVG), Prosus, and Premji Invest.

Digital automotive platform CarDekho SEA raised $60 million from Navis Capital Partners and Dragon Fund.

Robotics startup Haber raised $44 million from Creaegis, BEENEXT, and Accel.

Omnichannel furniture and home decor retailer Wooden Street raised Rs 354 crore (about $43 million) from Premji Invest.

Cleantech startup SolarSquare raised $40 million from Lightspeed, Lightrock, Elevation Capital, Lowercarbon, Rainmatter, and Gruhas Proptech.

Edtech startup K12 Techno Services raised $40 million from Kenro Capital.

Tech startup LambdaTest raised $38 million from Avataar Ventures and Qualcomm Ventures.

Spacetech startup Pixxel raised $24 million from M&G Catalyst, Glade Brook Capital Partners, Google, Radical Ventures, and Lightspeed.

Fintech startup Snapmint raised $18 million from Prudent Investment Managers, Perpetuity Ventures, and Pegasus Fininvest.

Education-focused non-banking finance company (NBFC) Varthana raised $15 million (~Rs 120 crore) from BlueOrchard Microfinance Fund.

Avanti Finance raised $14.2 million (Rs 120 crore approx.) from Dia Vikas Capital, IDH Farmfit Fund, NRJN Family Trust, and Rabo Partnerships, and HNIs.

Healthtech startup DCDC Health Services raised Rs 82 crore ($9.6 million approx.) from British International Investment (BII).

D2C startup FirstClub raised $8 million from Accel, RTP Global, Blume Founders Fund, Quiet Capital, 2am VC, and angel investors.

Skilling platform FinX raised $6 million from Elevar Equity.