D2C skincare brand Foxtale raises $18 million from Panthera Growth Partners
D2C skincare brand Foxtale has secured $18 million in its Series B round of funding, led by Singapore-based Panthera Growth Partners (PGP), along with participation from existing backers Matrix Partners India and Kae Capital.
“The fresh round of funds will be deployed towards expanding our digital footprint and introducing newer categories in our portfolio of products," Romita Mazumdar, Founder, Foxtale, said in a statement.
The company closed FY24 at Rs 172 crore GMV sales, primarily driven by its D2C website. The brand said it holds a high retention rate of over 50 percent.
CredAble raises Rs 30 crore from SIDBI for business expansion
Fintech firm CredAble has raised Rs 30 crore in debt funding from SIDBI to scale up their operations and extend affordable financing solutions to MSMEs and women-led businesses in India.
The company's AI-powered technology platform offers built-to-suit, large-scale liquidity programs tailored to the unique needs of enterprises and their network of MSME suppliers, enabling more than $8 billion annually in working capital for India Inc.
The startup plans to extend its financing scope to a wider portfolio of businesses, including those led by women. The company recently had dedicated Rs 200 crore to back women-led enterprises and has supported more than 50 such businesses across India over the course of 10 months.
Finsall secures Rs 15 crore in bridge funding round
Insurance-first BNPL startup, Finsall has bagged Rs 15 crore in a bridge funding round led by Unicorn India Ventures and Seafund with additional involvement from other institutional investors. The funds raised will be used for setting up an NBFC to scale lending operations and deliver more value to its customers in insurance premium financing.
The funds will also be allocated for tech enhancement with an aim to develop intuitive, user-friendly interfaces to provide seamless digital experiences for key stakeholders including insurance companies, brokers, agents and lending partners (Banks and NBFCs). The company also aims to utilize current capital infusion for developing more strategic partnerships with the insurers, intermediaries, and lenders to broaden service offerings and enhance distribution channels, a statement said.
The fintech player claims to have grown 9X in the last 2 years and is currently serving customers across 8,000 locations in India. Finsall said it is on track to achieve 4X revenue growth in the current fiscal year.
Clapingo raises undisclosed amount as part of Pre-Series in equity investment
Clapingo, an on-demand English tutoring platform has raised an undisclosed amount from investors including Biswa Kalyan Rath (Comedian and Writer), Sandeep Aggarwal (Droom and Shopclues) and Appurv Gupta (Comedian and Satirist) and Foundership HQ.
The funding will be allocated to enhance Clapingo's product, specifically to develop the fluency report system on the platform, ensuring customers receive prompt and precise feedback.
Additionally, the funds will be invested in marketing efforts to attract more users and significantly expand the user base, driving the company's growth and impact in the market, as per a statement.
Tom Joseph backs Eduport via Luxembourg-based Verso Capital
Eduport, an edtech startup has raised an undisclosed sum in fresh funding round led by edupreneur-cum-angel investor Dr. Tom M. Joseph. The Europe-based Verso Capital played a significant part in this initiative by connecting the two entities with similar objectives, as per the company.
The edtech aims to use the funds to enhance its tech infrastructure, content creation and curation in multiple languages to overcome challenges for students from non-English mediums.
Founded in 2020, Eduport offers NEET, KEAM, CUET, and JEE classes both online and offline to thousands of students.
Recur Club launches debt offerings for startups
Recur Club, a debt marketplace for startups, has unveiled its latest credit offering — Recur Scale, for financing Series A, B, and beyond startups and SMEs with revenues of Rs 40 crore and above.
The platform will offer debt financing of up to Rs 100 crore, targeting sectors such as SaaS, tech, e-commerce, manufacturing, EV, D2C, agritech, among others.
Recur Club plans to deploy a total of Rs 1,000 crore with the Recur Scale program for startups and SMEs, along with an additional Rs 2,000 crore through its Recur Swift program for startups in FY25, the firm said in a statement.
Logistics tech provider Pidge joins govt-run ONDC Network
Logistics technology provider Pidge has joined the government-run Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to accelerate e-commerce growth in hyperlocal and same-city deliveries across India.
Using Pidge's extensive network of over 200 regional and national partners, this initiative aims to increase e-commerce penetration beyond the current 5 per cent level in the country.
In addition, the company mentioned that sellers will now have an opportunity to utilise Pidge's platform to expand their e-commerce reach through the ONDC Network. By facilitating end-to-end on-network transactions, this approach will promote a sustainable business model as well as empower small businesses by enhancing reliability, accessibility, and ease of use across the country’s diverse value chain.
Singer Anirudh Ravichander joins South Indian coffee startup VS Mani & Co as co-founder
Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Jawan's music composer Anirudh Ravichander has joined South Indian filter coffee and snacks brand VS Mani & Co as co-founder and brand ambassador, as it aims to expand presence and grow market share in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
With the development, Ravichander will also hold some equity in the company. “VS Mani & Co is a game-changer for my generation of filter coffee lovers. I decided that I wanted to be an active force in their story, not just a consumer. And while I’m at it, I want to do my bit to shine the light on our South Indian cuisine and filter coffee for the world to see,” Anirudh Ravichander, music composer and co-founder of VS Mani & Co said.
Founded by GD Prasad, Yashas Alur and Rahul Bajaj in 2020, VS Mani & Co has raised a total of $1.5 million from Kettleborough VC, Lets Venture, Hyderabad Angels, Supermorpheus, and others.
Flipkart collaborates with DPIIT to empower Indian Toy Manufacturers
In line with the objective of providing an impetus to the growing Indian toy sector, homegrown ecommerce major Flipkart and the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) organised a workshop on how the emerging opportunities from the e-commerce marketplace can be leveraged to bolster the growth of the Indian Toy Industry.
Addressing a joint workshop of Indian toy manufacturers and e-retail giant Flipkart, Joint Secretary, DPIIT, Sanjiv said: “The success of the Indian toy industry reflects in the enhanced exports, increasing robustness of the manufacturing ecosystem and reduced import dependence.”
The workshop organised in collaboration with Flipkart and the Indian Toy Industry helped the domestic toy manufacturers to understand the nuances of online selling, thereby enabling a step further towards building a “Toyconomy”.
GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY & STARTUP NEWS
Apple becomes the first $1 trillion global brand: Kantar
Apple has become the first brand to cross $1 trillion in brand value, a 15% jump from last year, a global ranking by Kantar's BrandZ showed.
The iPhone maker retained its crown as the world's most valuable brand for the third straight year in 2024, followed by Alphabet's Google at $753 billion and Microsoft at $713 billion, Kantar said.
Earlier this week, Apple unveiled new AI features, which are expected to rekindle demand for iPhones and reverse a sales decline for its biggest-selling product due to choppy consumer spending and resurgent tech rivals.
Elon Musk withdraws lawsuit against OpenAI
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has moved to dismiss his lawsuit accusing ChatGPT maker OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman of abandoning the startup's original mission of developing artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity and not for profit.
Attorneys for Musk asked the California state court to dismiss the lawsuit, originally filed in February, without giving a reason for the move, according to a filing in San Francisco Superior Court.
A Superior Court judge there was prepared to hear OpenAI’s bid to dismiss the lawsuit at a hearing scheduled for Wednesday. OpenAI and an attorney for Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Musk dismissed his case without prejudice, which means he could refile it at another time.
MediaTek designs Arm-based chip for Microsoft's AI laptops
Taiwanese chip design giant MediaTek is developing an Arm-based personal computer chip that will run Microsoft's Windows operating system, according to a Reuters report.
Last month, Microsoft unveiled a new generation of laptops that feature chips designed with Arm Holdings tech, which provide enough horsepower to run the artificial intelligence applications that executives said were the future of consumer computing. The MediaTek chip is geared toward this effort.
The software company's plans take aim at Apple which has released its own Arm-based chips for Mac computers for roughly four years. And Microsoft's decision to optimize Windows for Arm could threaten Intel's longstanding dominance in the PC market.
Google to test anti-theft AI feature for phones in Brazil
Google said that Brazil will be the first country to test an anti-theft feature for Android phones that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to identify when a phone has been stolen and lock the device's screen.
Three types of lock will be available in the initial test phase. In one of them, Google will use AI that it created to help detect signals of "common movement associated with theft" and block the screen.
The second feature allows a user to lock the device's screen remotely by entering the phone number and completing a security challenge from another device. The last mode involves automatically locking the screen if the device is left without internet access for long periods.
Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes seeks to overturn fraud conviction
Lawyers for Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and company President Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani urged a federal appeals court to overturn their convictions for defrauding investors in the failed blood testing startup, which was once valued at $9 billion.
Amy Saharia, Holmes' lawyer, told a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco that Holmes believed she was telling the truth when she told investors that Theranos's miniature blood testing device could accurately run a broad array of medical diagnostic tests on a small amount of blood.
Holmes, who started Theranos as a college student and became its public face, was indicted alongside Balwani, her former romantic partner, in 2018. The two were tried separately in 2022, and sentenced later that year to 11 years and three months, and 12 years and 11 months, respectively.
D2C skincare brand Foxtale has secured $18 million in its Series B round of funding, led by Singapore-based Panthera Growth Partners (PGP), along with participation from existing backers Matrix Partners India and Kae Capital.
“The fresh round of funds will be deployed towards expanding our digital footprint and introducing newer categories in our portfolio of products," Romita Mazumdar, Founder, Foxtale, said in a statement.
The company closed FY24 at Rs 172 crore GMV sales, primarily driven by its D2C website. The brand said it holds a high retention rate of over 50 percent.
CredAble raises Rs 30 crore from SIDBI for business expansion
Fintech firm CredAble has raised Rs 30 crore in debt funding from SIDBI to scale up their operations and extend affordable financing solutions to MSMEs and women-led businesses in India.
The company's AI-powered technology platform offers built-to-suit, large-scale liquidity programs tailored to the unique needs of enterprises and their network of MSME suppliers, enabling more than $8 billion annually in working capital for India Inc.
The startup plans to extend its financing scope to a wider portfolio of businesses, including those led by women. The company recently had dedicated Rs 200 crore to back women-led enterprises and has supported more than 50 such businesses across India over the course of 10 months.
Finsall secures Rs 15 crore in bridge funding round
Insurance-first BNPL startup, Finsall has bagged Rs 15 crore in a bridge funding round led by Unicorn India Ventures and Seafund with additional involvement from other institutional investors. The funds raised will be used for setting up an NBFC to scale lending operations and deliver more value to its customers in insurance premium financing.
The funds will also be allocated for tech enhancement with an aim to develop intuitive, user-friendly interfaces to provide seamless digital experiences for key stakeholders including insurance companies, brokers, agents and lending partners (Banks and NBFCs). The company also aims to utilize current capital infusion for developing more strategic partnerships with the insurers, intermediaries, and lenders to broaden service offerings and enhance distribution channels, a statement said.
The fintech player claims to have grown 9X in the last 2 years and is currently serving customers across 8,000 locations in India. Finsall said it is on track to achieve 4X revenue growth in the current fiscal year.
Clapingo raises undisclosed amount as part of Pre-Series in equity investment
Clapingo, an on-demand English tutoring platform has raised an undisclosed amount from investors including Biswa Kalyan Rath (Comedian and Writer), Sandeep Aggarwal (Droom and Shopclues) and Appurv Gupta (Comedian and Satirist) and Foundership HQ.
The funding will be allocated to enhance Clapingo's product, specifically to develop the fluency report system on the platform, ensuring customers receive prompt and precise feedback.
Additionally, the funds will be invested in marketing efforts to attract more users and significantly expand the user base, driving the company's growth and impact in the market, as per a statement.
Tom Joseph backs Eduport via Luxembourg-based Verso Capital
Eduport, an edtech startup has raised an undisclosed sum in fresh funding round led by edupreneur-cum-angel investor Dr. Tom M. Joseph. The Europe-based Verso Capital played a significant part in this initiative by connecting the two entities with similar objectives, as per the company.
The edtech aims to use the funds to enhance its tech infrastructure, content creation and curation in multiple languages to overcome challenges for students from non-English mediums.
Founded in 2020, Eduport offers NEET, KEAM, CUET, and JEE classes both online and offline to thousands of students.
Recur Club launches debt offerings for startups
Recur Club, a debt marketplace for startups, has unveiled its latest credit offering — Recur Scale, for financing Series A, B, and beyond startups and SMEs with revenues of Rs 40 crore and above.
The platform will offer debt financing of up to Rs 100 crore, targeting sectors such as SaaS, tech, e-commerce, manufacturing, EV, D2C, agritech, among others.
Recur Club plans to deploy a total of Rs 1,000 crore with the Recur Scale program for startups and SMEs, along with an additional Rs 2,000 crore through its Recur Swift program for startups in FY25, the firm said in a statement.
Logistics tech provider Pidge joins govt-run ONDC Network
Logistics technology provider Pidge has joined the government-run Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) to accelerate e-commerce growth in hyperlocal and same-city deliveries across India.
Using Pidge's extensive network of over 200 regional and national partners, this initiative aims to increase e-commerce penetration beyond the current 5 per cent level in the country.
In addition, the company mentioned that sellers will now have an opportunity to utilise Pidge's platform to expand their e-commerce reach through the ONDC Network. By facilitating end-to-end on-network transactions, this approach will promote a sustainable business model as well as empower small businesses by enhancing reliability, accessibility, and ease of use across the country’s diverse value chain.
Singer Anirudh Ravichander joins South Indian coffee startup VS Mani & Co as co-founder
Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Jawan's music composer Anirudh Ravichander has joined South Indian filter coffee and snacks brand VS Mani & Co as co-founder and brand ambassador, as it aims to expand presence and grow market share in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
With the development, Ravichander will also hold some equity in the company. “VS Mani & Co is a game-changer for my generation of filter coffee lovers. I decided that I wanted to be an active force in their story, not just a consumer. And while I’m at it, I want to do my bit to shine the light on our South Indian cuisine and filter coffee for the world to see,” Anirudh Ravichander, music composer and co-founder of VS Mani & Co said.
Founded by GD Prasad, Yashas Alur and Rahul Bajaj in 2020, VS Mani & Co has raised a total of $1.5 million from Kettleborough VC, Lets Venture, Hyderabad Angels, Supermorpheus, and others.
Flipkart collaborates with DPIIT to empower Indian Toy Manufacturers
In line with the objective of providing an impetus to the growing Indian toy sector, homegrown ecommerce major Flipkart and the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) organised a workshop on how the emerging opportunities from the e-commerce marketplace can be leveraged to bolster the growth of the Indian Toy Industry.
Addressing a joint workshop of Indian toy manufacturers and e-retail giant Flipkart, Joint Secretary, DPIIT, Sanjiv said: “The success of the Indian toy industry reflects in the enhanced exports, increasing robustness of the manufacturing ecosystem and reduced import dependence.”
The workshop organised in collaboration with Flipkart and the Indian Toy Industry helped the domestic toy manufacturers to understand the nuances of online selling, thereby enabling a step further towards building a “Toyconomy”.
GLOBAL TECHNOLOGY & STARTUP NEWS
Apple becomes the first $1 trillion global brand: Kantar
Apple has become the first brand to cross $1 trillion in brand value, a 15% jump from last year, a global ranking by Kantar's BrandZ showed.
The iPhone maker retained its crown as the world's most valuable brand for the third straight year in 2024, followed by Alphabet's Google at $753 billion and Microsoft at $713 billion, Kantar said.
Earlier this week, Apple unveiled new AI features, which are expected to rekindle demand for iPhones and reverse a sales decline for its biggest-selling product due to choppy consumer spending and resurgent tech rivals.
Elon Musk withdraws lawsuit against OpenAI
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk has moved to dismiss his lawsuit accusing ChatGPT maker OpenAI and its CEO Sam Altman of abandoning the startup's original mission of developing artificial intelligence for the benefit of humanity and not for profit.
Attorneys for Musk asked the California state court to dismiss the lawsuit, originally filed in February, without giving a reason for the move, according to a filing in San Francisco Superior Court.
A Superior Court judge there was prepared to hear OpenAI’s bid to dismiss the lawsuit at a hearing scheduled for Wednesday. OpenAI and an attorney for Musk did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Musk dismissed his case without prejudice, which means he could refile it at another time.
MediaTek designs Arm-based chip for Microsoft's AI laptops
Taiwanese chip design giant MediaTek is developing an Arm-based personal computer chip that will run Microsoft's Windows operating system, according to a Reuters report.
Last month, Microsoft unveiled a new generation of laptops that feature chips designed with Arm Holdings tech, which provide enough horsepower to run the artificial intelligence applications that executives said were the future of consumer computing. The MediaTek chip is geared toward this effort.
The software company's plans take aim at Apple which has released its own Arm-based chips for Mac computers for roughly four years. And Microsoft's decision to optimize Windows for Arm could threaten Intel's longstanding dominance in the PC market.
Google to test anti-theft AI feature for phones in Brazil
Google said that Brazil will be the first country to test an anti-theft feature for Android phones that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to identify when a phone has been stolen and lock the device's screen.
Three types of lock will be available in the initial test phase. In one of them, Google will use AI that it created to help detect signals of "common movement associated with theft" and block the screen.
The second feature allows a user to lock the device's screen remotely by entering the phone number and completing a security challenge from another device. The last mode involves automatically locking the screen if the device is left without internet access for long periods.
Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes seeks to overturn fraud conviction
Lawyers for Theranos founder Elizabeth Holmes and company President Ramesh "Sunny" Balwani urged a federal appeals court to overturn their convictions for defrauding investors in the failed blood testing startup, which was once valued at $9 billion.
Amy Saharia, Holmes' lawyer, told a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco that Holmes believed she was telling the truth when she told investors that Theranos's miniature blood testing device could accurately run a broad array of medical diagnostic tests on a small amount of blood.
Holmes, who started Theranos as a college student and became its public face, was indicted alongside Balwani, her former romantic partner, in 2018. The two were tried separately in 2022, and sentenced later that year to 11 years and three months, and 12 years and 11 months, respectively.
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