Author: Girish Shetti

Chennai based Saas startup Freshworks seems to be leaving no stone unturned in seizing good companies through acquisition route. It has now acquired website analytics start-up firm Zarget, marking ninth acquisition for the Chennai based firm in three years. However, financial details of the latest acquisition have not been disclosed, but a statement issued to the media mentioned that Zarget’s angel investors have retrieved their initial investment through this deal. Founded in 2015 by former employees of Zoho Corporation, Zarget helps companies to optimize the conversion rates of their websites. This web analytic firm is also based in Chennai and…

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The Bengaluru based health and fitness startup CureFit has lapped up $25 million (Rs 160 crore) in series B funding from its existing investors, according to the statement issued by the company. The existing investors include Accel Partners, IDG Ventures, Kalaari Capital and UC-RNT Fund. Almost one week earlier, various reports in media had suggested that Curefit is looking to raise fresh funds in the range of $25 to 30 mn. Curefit plans to use fresh funds to expand its geographical footprints, including the plan to start its cult fitness center in Gurgoan by October this year. The startup has…

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Restaurant solution provider Mobikon has managed to rake up $7 Mn in a Series B funding led by various high profile VC firms including Sistema Asia Fund, C31 Ventures, and Qualgro. The funding also saw participation from existing investors Spring Singapore and Jungle Ventures. Mobikon will be using the funds to further consolidate its operations in existing markets like India, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Besides, the startup will use part of the serial B funding to start operations in the UK and Australia by January next year. Mobikon was established by Samir Khadepaun in 2012 as a platform…

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Healthcare startup Medinfi has raked up nearly Rs 80 lakhs ($125,000) from various international investors. This is the sixth round of funding for the Bengaluru based startup ever since its launch in 2014. Three of these funding (including the current one) have taken place this year. According to the reports, Medinfi will be using the fresh funds to further expand its customer base to 5 million and extend its network across 50 Indian cities by 2018. The angel investors who participated in the current round of funding are PBS Srinivas from Middle East region, Vinod Martin & Alok Bahl from…

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New York based VC giant Tiger Global Management is in advanced talks to lead a $10-15-million of funding in its portfolio company Inshorts, according to two people familiar with the matter. Inshorts is a news media startup that offers quick and rapid news to smartphone millennials, bringing all the important news in mere 60 words. If the Inshorts deal does go through, it will mark Tiger Global’s much awaited comeback into Indian startup ecosystem. It has been well over a year now since the VC giant has made any major investment in any Indian startup. Interestingly, Tiger Global’s much awaited…

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Bengaluru and San Francisco based software development community Indiez has raked up $500,000 (around Rs 3.2 crore) in seed funding round from Haresh Chawla, partner in venture capital firm True North (formerly known as India Value Fund). Another unnamed angel investor also participated in the seed funding round. The founders have claimed that they were able seal the deal after a 4 hour long meeting with Haresh and the other partner. Both have reportedly invested in the startup in their personal capacities. The seed funding will come as a real shot in the arm for Indiez, which till now was…

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India Post has sent a showcase notice to payment major Paytm warning the latter must desist from the using word ‘Postcard.’ The government owned India Post has sent a showcase notice to payment major Paytm over usage of the word ‘postcard’ for its recently launched product. According to media reports, India Post has categorically stated in the notice that Paytm must desist from using the word ‘postcard’ as it has the sole right to use this word. India Post, which is generally referred to as post office, has reportedly cited the IPO Act rules and regulations in its showcase notice.…

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Maker of Bira 91 craft beer has raised $8 million in fresh round of funding from Sequoia Capital. The company now aims to enter in five new markets. B9 Beverages Pvt Ltd, maker of Bira 91 craft beer, has raised nearly $8 million in fresh round of funding from well-known VC firm Sequoia Capital India, informed Ankur Jain – founder of the company. This is the third time that B9 Beverages has raised funds from Sequoia Capital, taking company’s total fund raising to around $30 million. Jain said that the latest fund infusion will help B9 Beverages to enter into…

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A US-based startup Smart Software Testing Solutions Inc. (SSTS) has picked up a stake in Crowd4Test.com by investing undisclosed amount in the Bengaluru based firm. After all the procedures of the deal are completed, SSTS’s co-founder and director Avinash Tiwari will join Crowd4Test’s board of directors team. Tiwari said in a statement that this investment will be useful for SSTS in building all-in-one platform for mobile app and IoT app testing. The company aims to incorporate ‘pCloudy’ – one of its Saas product – and its Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered mobile app testing platform with Crowd4Test.com. He further added that through…

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Bombay Shaving Company, a male grooming products startup, on Tuesday announced that it has raised $2.5 million from Fireside Ventures in Pre-series A funding. Fireside Ventures specializes in early seed investments. Several high net worth individuals (HNIs) including S Ramadorai (former CEO of TCS) also participated in the round. Bombay Shaving’s founder Shantanu Deshpande said that the company will channelize the fresh funds towards brand building initiatives and introducing new range of products. According to the reports, the company plans to launch new products in beard grooming category – oils, conditioner and wax. Interestingly, this category till now has been…

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Nascoom 10000 backed social SaaS startup EasyGov has raised undisclosed amount in angel round from Social Alpha – a Tata Trust Initiative – and clutch of other investors. The other investors include Rajan Anandan, Rajeev Ahuja (Navayuga Group) and Kshitij Arora. Few Investors from well-known VC firm LetsVenture also participated in the fund raising exercise. Established in 2015 by Amit Shukla, EasyGov aims to provide common citizens easy access to government schemes and services through its citizen centric IT system. The company claims that it has needed passion for simplifying government schemes and services for Indian people. Among other services,…

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Paytm Mall, the e-commerce arm of Paytm, is all set to invest $35 million or 225 crore in its logistics network. The investment would help the e-commerce company to speed-up the delivery services, with the company planning to offer same day and next day deliveries to its customers. The important announcement comes just ahead of the festive seasons as the company braces for spike in customer’s demand. In the first phase, Alibaba backed Paytm Mall will focus to improve its logistics infrastructure across 25 cities and limit to only electronics & appliances. In the next phase, it will seek to…

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