#pre-seed venture capital firms in india | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

sharensharma · 1 month

Text

Funding Your Future: Resources for Tech Startups in Bangalore

Bangalore, India's Silicon Valley, pulsates with the energy of innovation. Tech startups are the lifeblood of this dynamic city, constantly pushing boundaries and shaping the future. But for these young ventures, a crucial hurdle lies in securing funding.

This blog serves as a roadmap for Tech Startups in Bangalore, navigating the exciting yet intricate world of funding options. We'll delve into various resources available, from angel investors to VC firms in India, empowering you to find the perfect fit for your business.

Bootstrapping: Building Your Foundation

Bootstrapping, or self-funding your startup, is a fantastic option for businesses with a clear path to profitability. This allows you to retain complete control and build a strong foundation organically. Utilize personal savings, pre-orders, or even crowdfunding platforms to raise initial capital.

Bootstrapping isn't for everyone, but it instills a sense of resourcefulness and financial discipline that can prove invaluable in the long run.

Angel Investors: Your Seed Stage Support System

Angel investors are individuals with high net worth who invest in promising early-stage ventures. They often provide not just capital but also mentorship and guidance, leveraging their experience to help you navigate the complexities of growing a business.

Benefits of Angel Investors:

Faster Decision Making: Compared to traditional VC firms, angels offer a quicker turnaround on funding decisions.

Mentorship: Their expertise can be invaluable in areas like marketing, strategy, and building a strong team.

Flexible Investment: Angels may be more open to innovative ideas and unconventional business models.

Finding Angel Investors:

Networks: Seek introductions from friends, family, previous employers, or advisors who may know potential investors.

Angel Investor Groups: Several angel investor groups exist in Bangalore, often hosting pitch events where startups can showcase their ideas.

Online Platforms: Platforms like AngelList connect startups with angel investors worldwide.

Before approaching angel investors, have a clear and concise pitch deck that highlights your business vision, market potential, and financial projections.

Incubators and Accelerators: Structured Growth

Tech incubators and accelerators provide budding startups with a supportive ecosystem for growth. They offer office space, mentorship, access to networks, and sometimes even seed funding. Incubators are ideal for early-stage ventures, while accelerators focus on high-growth businesses with a well-defined product or service.

Benefits of Incubators and Accelerators:

Structured Environment: Gain access to shared workspaces, resources, and industry experts.

Mentorship: Receive valuable guidance from experienced entrepreneurs and investors.

Networking Opportunities: Connect with potential investors, partners, and customers.

Finding Incubators and Accelerators:

Several top-tier incubators and accelerators operate in Bangalore, like:

NASSCOM Startup Warehouse

Tlabs

The Indus Entrepreneurs (TiE)

Research programs that align with your industry and growth stage before applying.

VC Firms in India: Fueling Growth

Venture capitalists (VCs) are firms that invest in high-growth businesses with the potential for significant returns. Obtaining VC funding is a significant milestone, fueling rapid expansion and market dominance.

Benefits of VC Funding:

Larger Investments: VC firms can provide substantial capital to scale your business.

Strategic Expertise: VCs have extensive experience in specific industries, offering valuable strategic guidance.

Network Access: Gain access to a network of potential partners, advisors, and future funding rounds.

Challenges of VC Funding:

Stringent Requirements: VCs have rigorous selection criteria, demanding a strong track record, proven traction, and a scalable business model.

Loss of Control: VCs may seek greater control over the company's direction and decision-making.

Finding VC Firms in India:

Research: Identify VC firms in India that invest in your specific industry and growth stage. Some prominent VC firms in India include Sequoia Capital, Kalaari Capital, and Nexus Venture Partners.

Networking: Attend industry events and conferences to connect with VC professionals.

Strong Pitch: Develop a compelling pitch deck that showcases your competitive edge and justifies the funding amount requested.

Remember, securing VC funding is a competitive process. Be prepared to demonstrate your company's potential for exponential growth and impact.

Beyond Funding: Exploring Alternative Options

Venture debt financing provides debt capital to established startups with recurring revenue. It's a good option for businesses with a clear path to profitability but requiring additional working capital.

Government grants are also a viable option for startups addressing social or technological challenges aligned with government initiatives. Research relevant schemes and apply through the appropriate channels.

Remember, securing funding is just one step in your startup journey. Utilize the resources obtained to build a strong, sustainable business with a positive impact.

Finding the Right Fit

The ideal funding source depends on your specific needs and stage of development. Here's a quick breakdown to guide your decision:

Bootstrapping: Ideal for startups with a clear path to profitability and a desire to retain control.

Angel Investors: Excellent for early-stage ventures seeking seed funding and valuable mentorship.

Incubators and Accelerators: Perfect for startups seeking structured growth, mentorship, and networking opportunities.

VC Firms: Ideal for high-growth businesses requiring substantial capital and strategic expertise.

Embrace the Journey

The journey to secure funding is an incredible learning experience. It compels you to refine your business plan, articulate your vision, and build a strong team. Don't be discouraged by setbacks – learn from them and keep refining your approach.

Krystal Ventures Studio: Your Connection to Success

Krystal Ventures Studio is a platform designed to bridge the gap between Tech Startups in Bangalore and potential investment partners. We understand the intricacies of the funding landscape and strive to connect promising startups with the resources they need to thrive.

Get in touch with Krystal Ventures Studio today and unlock the potential of your innovative venture!

#how to invest in startups for equity #tech startups to invest in #top venture studios

0 notes

paynxt360 · 1 year

Text

The B2B BNPL ecosystem continues to grow as more players, including banks, enter the market

Whilst the B2B BNPL sector is still in its infancy, the market is evolving rapidly as the ecosystem continues to grow at a significant pace. In 2022, a growing amount of venture capital and private equity funds entered into the B2B side of the buy now pay later (BNPL) industry. Seen as a lucrative growth opportunity, amid the heightened inflation that has put pressure on small and medium-sized enterprises, many new players, including banking institutions are foraying into the B2B BNPL market.

In January 2023, Santander CIB, Allianz Trade, and Two entered into a strategic collaboration to develop a B2B BNPL product targeted towards large multinational corporates. While Two is taking care of the payment technology, Santander CIB is financing payments to sellers and credit to buyers. Allianz Trade, on the other hand, is offering protection against non-payment risk.

The partnership between the three business entities comes at the time when Two and Allianz Trade partnered earlier in 2023 to provide small and medium-sized enterprises with financing solutions in the United Kingdom. On the other hand, Allianz Trade and Santander were exploring opportunities to fund large projects. To facilitate large B2B sales, these business entities have entered into a single collaboration to offer instant payment technologies to corporates.

In 2023, the B2B BNPL sector is projected to expand rapidly due to the current economic challenges faced by small and medium-sized enterprises. Consequently, providers have continued to raise growth rounds to expand their services.

Tranch, for instance, announced that the firm had raised US$100 million in a Seed funding round in January 2023. The capital round was led by Soma Capital and FoundersX. The firm is planning to use the fresh capital for bringing its B2B BNPL solution to more software-as-a-service sellers. Additionally, Tranch is also seeking to grow its team in the United States and expand into other business verticals.

In January 2023, Mondu, another B2B BNPL provider, announced that the firm had raised US$13 million in an extended Series A round. Notably, the firm raised US$43 million as part of its Series A round in 2022. The extended Series A round, led by Valar Ventures, means that the firm had raised a total of approximately US$90, since its inception.

Like Tranch, Mondu is also planning to use the capital round for driving its market growth, while also funding the development of new products. The B2B BNPL market is also gaining strong growth momentum in the Asia Pacific region, where firms are attracting venture capital and private equity dollars.

Singapore-based actyv.ai scored US$12 million in its pre-Series A funding round in January 2023. The capital round backed by 1Digi Ventures will be used for exploring global expansion opportunities. The US$12 million round also includes the US$5 million funding that actyv.ai raised from 1Digi Ventures in 2022. During the 12 months in 2022, the firm recorded strong growth, while its BNPL throughput exceeded US$100 million.

Amid the growing shift and focus on the B2B space and to capitalize on the high growth potential of the B2B BNPL market, firms are also entering into strategic collaborations and partnerships in the global market. actyv.ai, for instance, entered into a strategic collaboration with RATNAAFIN, an India-based NBFC firm. The strategic alliance is part of the firm’s strategy to facilitate embedded B2B BNPL offerings for micro, small, and medium enterprises. Similar trends have been observed in the European market, where the B2B BNPL sector has gained widespread popularity.

In January 2023, Hokodo, the B2B BNPL provider, announced that the firm had entered into a strategic alliance with Lemonway to help B2B marketplaces offer trade credit online in Europe. While Hokodo will evaluate the buying power of businesses in real-time, Lemonway will assist with payments and help platforms with regulations and compliance.

With many industries catching the trend of the B2B marketplace, there is a lucrative growth opportunity for financial institutions by offering seamless and quick payment solutions to businesses. In 2023, many more financial institutions, including innovative startups and incumbents, are expected to tap into the massive growth area of B2B BNPL. Consequently, the B2B BNPL ecosystem is expected to expand further and record strong growth over the next 12 months in the global market.

To know more and gain a deeper understanding of the global BNPL market, click here.

#bnpl buynowpaylater marketresearch PayNXT360

0 notes

insperonjournal · 1 year

Text

A Climate Tech Accelerator Programme for Secure Investment.

ClimAct was created by Huddle, an accelerator-led fund for India’s early-stage entrepreneurs, and Merak Ventures, an early-stage VC firm, to assist India in reaching net-zero carbon emissions.

The program assists businesses in agricultural waste and supply chain efficiency, mobility and transportation, climate financing, carbon accounting and sequestration, and digital solutions for these industries.

Over 190 pre-seed and seed mobility, transportation, and agritech firms have applied to the initiative since November 8, 2022.

During the 16-week program, selected entrepreneurs will receive critical tools and extensive business planning.

During masterclasses, companies engage with a core mentor on capital restructuring, money management, team planning, pitch preparation, and other topics.

The curriculum will be completed through fundraising and business planning.

Each firm will get $200,000 in early capital and another $1.5 million in follow-up funding.

Clean Mobility Leads the Pack

Huddle and Merak will host a “The Climate Tech VC Opportunity” webinar on December 20, 2022. Sheetal Bahl of Merak Ventures and Ishaan Khosla of Huddle will explore India’s climate tech business during the hour-long event.

The discussion will center on how India’s ambitious COP27 targets necessitate climate-tech venture capital investments and big legislative changes to spur innovation.

India has altered its rules and invested in environmentally friendly transportation, including electric vehicles (EVs). It prioritizes renewable energy and will gradually phase out fossil fuels.

Bahl and Khosla will investigate how similar investments, assistance, and follow-up may encourage clean and renewable energy, waste management, green infrastructure, supply networks, and digital solutions.

The Climate Technology Venture Capital Opportunity

Bahl will meet with Omnivore’s Mark Kahn and Matrix Partners’ Sudipto Sannigrahi to explore climate-related technological financing.

Climate technology is attracting private investment. In 2021, financing for climate technologies will change.

In 2021, funding will be raised. $2 billion can cover 2% of India’s $1 trillion demand by 2030. Climate change needs investment.

Investors will evaluate climate change technology in India.

Challenges of Running a Climate Technology Start-up

At the end of the virtual event, Arun Sreyas of RACEnergy, Siddhanth Jayaram of Climes.io, and Ishaan Khosla of Huddle will explain how difficult climate tech management is.

The creators will investigate how to manage hardware and software in-house, how national and state policies and subsidies influence climate tech firms in India, and how to manufacture large-scale items in India for India.

India requires infrastructure, money, coaching, and a new business network to achieve its climate goals.

India wants to have no carbon emissions at all

Climate change is harming India. The global climate risk index is ranked sixth.

To prevent this tragedy, India must achieve net-zero carbon emissions in 50 years by 2070. Attempts have been impeded by uneven innovation and investor access.

Climate change must be addressed in India. Assisting, accelerating, and investing in game-changing early-stage climate change startups.

#edtech startup news #latest fintech news india #developers & startups

0 notes

your-dietician · 2 years

Text

Matrix Partners, long an investor in software infrastructure, has some questions about web3

New Post has been published on https://medianwire.com/matrix-partners-long-an-investor-in-software-infrastructure-has-some-questions-about-web3/

Matrix Partners, long an investor in software infrastructure, has some questions about web3

Antonio Rodriguez, who joined Matrix in 2005 after a company he’d founded — that Matrix backed — was sold to Hewlett-Packard, talked with us last week about Matrix’s biggest fund in roughly 20 years, an $800 million vehicle that the firm closed in June and is announcing for the first time now.

It’s a lot of capital for the firm, which, like Benchmark, has been consistent over the years about maintaining comparatively smaller funds, even while many other venture firms have doubled, tripled — even quintupled — their assets under management. (Like Benchmark, Matrix raised a $1 billion fund once during the dot-com era; it wound up returning half of it to its investors when the market imploded.)

We talked with Rodriguez about the new fund. We also talked with him about how Matrix works with Matrix Partners China and Matrix Partners India, founded in 2008 and 2006, respectively. (They mostly operate independently.) Given that software infrastructure is a major focus area for the firm — it was an early investor in Hubspot, Zendesk and Canva, for example — we also asked Rodriguez about web3, or the promise of a decentralized internet. As it turns out, Matrix doesn’t put much stock in it, not yet anyway. Excerpts from our chat follow, edited for length.

TC: You recently closed a fund that’s almost twice as big as your last three funds, which were each $450 million. You were really disciplined about size, then changed your minds. Why?

With our current fund that we just finished investing, every single deal we did was either at concept or seed or pre-seed or post-seed or Series A, so for us, it really wasn’t about stage drift. Due to new entrants and due to existing players moving backward into the A, [in recent years] you went from having to write a $10 million check to, in some cases, $15 million or $20 million, and we wanted to make sure we could keep doing those entry checks if the market had grown. That’s still very much [the case], especially for our categories.

So you’re really not seeing these Series A stage deals getting any smaller.

Not yet. For the best entrepreneurs, a Series A round size can still be $20 million plus. We also tend to like more technical projects, whether that’s software or hardware, or ideally, [a company at the] intersection of both, and those companies just need more money.

Some of these later-stage outfits appear to be shrinking. Is it easier now to maintain your pro rata without throwing elbows?

It is easier, and it will continue to get slightly easier. But also, if you look at our best exits across the last three funds, you’ll find that in these B and the C rounds, they don’t lend themselves well to what I would call the spreadsheet jockeys. [For these companies], you really need more conviction, and in a lot of cases, that meant you had to step up, as opposed to expecting that a Tiger or Coatue would come in and, in 72 hours, fund that company. That’s part of why maintaining our pro rata in this new environment may be easier, but it will be equally necessary.

You target, what 20% to 25% ownership?

That’s about right. Historically, it’s been anywhere between 20% and 25%. Over the last year, I’d say we were kind of tilted to 18% to 21% [when we would] enter “beyond concept.” But definitely 20% to 25% is the long-term structural target for us when we enter anywhere between concept and Series A.

When you say concept, are you talking about incubating companies?

Yes, a number of our companies — including my company — have started at one of our offices with an investor and an entrepreneur working at a whiteboard on an idea. We probably [dedicate] 5% to 10% of any given fund [to this].

Matrix is an investor in Canva, the graphic design business valued at $26 billion. Do you have a double-digit stake in that company?

Canva is a little bit different because it was out of market when we did it. We are top three on that cap table. So we invested the largest check, I believe, in the seed round and we own in the single digits. There was an investor who was in the pre-seed round, and then a large multistage investor has accumulated a position across many rounds.

Why didn’t it go public while the market was still wide open? It was founded in 2012, right?

Canva is a terrific business and will be a great IPO when it comes, in good times or bad times. Typically, companies go out because of something that will strategically help the business. Sometimes it’s as tactical as the company is growing very quickly but consuming a lot of cash and having access to the public market lets you [access cash faster]. And when you can combine that with an open window, it’s a win-win for everyone.

What about the benefit of greater public awareness once a company goes public?

It will come. There are millions and millions of paying users on the platform. Think is a company that has done the virality thing just right. It’s viral like a consumer company, but effective in making money like a B2B SaaS company.

In your words, Matrix’s big theme this year has been applied AI as it affects everything from SaaS applications to software infrastructure to networking to what happens in the data center. I haven’t heard you mention crypto or web3.

I have to tell you — and I think that the advantage of having nine partners is that people can keep me honest here — but my own personal view is that it’s a bit of a mirage. My own personal view is that a trusted distributed database is pretty interesting for a number of applications on both the B2B side and the consumer space, but most of the stuff out there — I dare say most of the stuff that’s made a lot of people a lot of money over this two-year speculator boom that seems to have come to an end — just feels like it’s wishful thinking at its best.

So you’re not hearing me mentioning it because we’re not, like, doubling and tripling down. We didn’t raise $800 million dollars to put a half of it into web3 applications. We have a couple of investments, but it’s because we’ve followed founders from payments into web3, or from proptech into web3, and less because we’re excited about the prospect of starting a web3 practice here until we see utility come to the applications.

Above: Matrix Partners’s team, members of which are based in both San Francisco and Boston. Rodriguez is at center.

Read full article here

0 notes

hybiz12 · 4 years

Link

Nippon India Digital Innovation AIF invests INR 50 Cr in Endiya Partners Fund II New Investment enables Japanese institutions, corporates to access and leverage digital innovation from Indian Startups (01)Endiya Fund II has received an investment of INR 50Cr from the Nippon India Digital Innovation AIF Fund. The Partnership with Nippon’s Digital Innovation Fund will provide Endiya portfolio companies with financial and strategic support resulting in increased access to growth opportunities and sustainable scalability. #NipponIndia #Endiyafund #Digitalinnovation #NAMindia #Nipponlifeinsurance Nippon India Digital Innovation AIF (NIDIA), a Fund of Funds, is a true example of collaboration targeted under the India-Japan Digital Partnership with the encouragement and support of the prime ministers of both countries. It is managed by Nippon Life India AIF Management Limited (NIAIF), a 100% subsidiary of Nippon Life India Asset Management Limited (NAM India). Nippon Life Insurance (NLI) owns 75% of NAM India. (01 end) (02)The FoF plans to invest in approximately 15-20 venture capital funds in India. The FoF shall invest across multiple horizontals like robotics & automation, internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence, machine learning, consumer technology, etc & various verticals like manufacturing, EV’s, automobiles, financial services, healthcare, education, eCommerce, retail, pharma, etc Endiya Partners is a seed and early-stage venture capital firm investing in IP led Indian product start-ups that are globally relevant. Endiya’s current portfolio includes Darwinbox, Steradian Semiconductors, Kissht, SigTuple, and Myelin Foundry.(02 end) (03)Limited Partners in the Fund include financial institutions, corporates, and family offices across India, Europe, and the U.S. Endiya Fund II will seek to invest in 16 – 20 start-ups, with an initial cheque size of US$ 500,000 to US$ 1 million in Seed/Pre-series Rounds and a planned investment of up to $5 million per company. Founded in 2016 by Sateesh Andra, cardiologist-turned-investor Ramesh Byrapaneni, and Abhishek Srivastava, Endiya added Abhiram Katta to its top deck in 2018 and most recently expanded its Investments team by hiring Dipesh Chawla and Lakshmi Kancharla.(03 end) (04)Endiya’s investment strategy addresses a funding gap in the venture capital spectrum in India between Angel and Series A investments, enabling entrepreneurs to find a value accretive partner to further the development of their vision to build a sustainable business model. While industry averages state that 30% of seed deals go on to raise follow on capital, 75% of Endiya’s Portfolio has raised follow on rounds. This affirms the team’s ability to successfully identify and co-create globally scalable early-stage startups. Endiya Fund II most recently received a commitment of INR 75Cr ($10M approx.) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. IFC has also committed an additional US$ 10 million for direct co-investments alongside Endiya Fund II.

#NipponIndia #Endiyafund #Digitalinnovation #NAMindia #Nipponlifeinsurance #NipponLifeIndia #LifeInsurance #NipponIndiaPharmaFund #NipponIndiaMutualFund #NipponIndiaGold #NipponIndiaDebtFund #TopBusinessNews #LatestNews #NewsUpdates

1 note · View note

shlipayadavblog · 2 years

Text

Venture capital firm Accel launches $650 mn fund for India, Southeast Asia

Global venture capital firm Accel has launched a $650 million fund for Indian and Southeast Asian startups, underscoring the large pool of capital being deployed by funds as they chase high-growth companies in developing markets.

"We believe our insights from the Indian market and the global Accel platform can help startups in the region (Southeast Asia) from seed to scale," Prayank Swaroop, a partner at Accel, said in a statement on Wednesday.

"We will be investing in the region across pre-seed to growth opportunities," Swaroop said.

Venture and private equity funding is thriving globally amid a technology boom that has particularly accelerated in developing countries as more consumers move online during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Accel said the latest launch will mark its seventh fund in India and Southeast Asia, pushing its total commitments in the region to $2 billion. Accel's India team has already invested in companies including Flipkart, which was bought by Walmart, and food delivery firm Swiggy.

#VENTURE CAPITAL #NEWS #COMPANIES #INDIA STARTUP #SOUTHEAST ASIA START-UPS

0 notes

techminsolutions · 3 years

Text

We focus on identifying outlier founders: Nitin Sharma, partner, Antler India

Nitin Sharma,Partner, Antler India Global venture capital firm Antler has raised over $300 million to date. The firm seeks to build on the success of its regional pre-seed fund model, currently in 15 countries, and with 350 investments in technology startups made, now intends to provide continued support investing up to Series C. Earlier this year, Antler announced a full-fledged launch in India,…

View On WordPress

0 notes

energeticaindia · 3 years

Text

Latest Renewable Energy News update & Conventional | Energetica India Magazine

Sicona Raises $3.7m to Scale Battery Materials Technology

Sicona Battery Technologies Pty Ltd (Sicona), a groundbreaking battery materials technology company, has successfully raised AU$3.7 million in a pre-Series A funding round. The funding round was led by global venture firm Artesian and US based Riverstone Ventures an affiliate of Riverstone Holdings with notable participation by Chaos Ventures (New York), Bandera Capital (Australia), SDGx Ventures (Singapore), and several prominent Australian climate-tech investors and global battery materials specialists. This latest capital injection follows the company's $1m seed round in July 2020, the award of a $704k 'Accelerating Commercialisation' Grant by the Australian Federal Government in November 2020, and Sicona's participation in the prestigious Startmate accelerator in its Summer 2021 climate technology cohort. Sicona, founded in June 2019 by experienced entrepreneur, Christiaan Jordaan, and Andrew Minett, a highly credentialed materials scientist, is developing next-generation battery technology used in the anodes (negative electrodes) of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries that enables electric mobility. Sicona is commercialising innovative silicon-graphite composite battery anode and binder process technology and materials, developed and perfected over the last ten years at the Australian Institute for Innovative Materials (AIIM) at the University of Wollongong. Sicona's current generation silicon-graphite composite anode materials deliver 50% to 100% higher capacity than conventional "graphite-only" materials and as a result, its cell producer customers can unlock more than 50% higher cell energy density than current Li-ion batteries thereby increasing electric vehicle range whilst reducing the cost and the time it takes to charge. According to a recent report prepared by Accenture for the Future Battery Industries Cooperative Research Centre (FBICRC), of which Sicona is an associate participant, diversified battery industries could contribute $7.4 billion annually to Australia's economy and support 34,700 jobs by 2030. One of the six opportunities identified in the report for Australia to expand its presence across the battery value chain is the establishment of "active materials manufacturing capability to serve the global value chain". This is where Sicona comes into play with its plans to establish domestic commercial-scale advanced manufacturing of its next-generation active anode materials. The global lithium battery opportunity is growing rapidly with more than 4TWh (equivalent to 4,000 gigawatt sized factories) of announced cell production requiring in excess of four million tonnes of anode materials per annum. From its Australian base, Sicona also has its eyes firmly set on deploying commercial-scale production plants in Europe and North America. Sicona founder and CEO, Christiaan Jordaan said: "The energy density of current lithium-ion batteries is limiting performance, resulting in multiple issues including higher upfront costs and lower range for electric vehicles. It is our mission to provide scalable next-generation materials at an affordable cost to our customers. Sicona's unique silicon-graphite anode products solve the technical challenges experienced by using silicon in a battery but at a fraction of the cost of competing approaches due to our simple and scalable production process. We are taking multiple products to market, including the binder system, conductive carbons and active anode materials. Furthermore, we are solving key supply chain issues by taking a leading role in deploying our technology in Australia, Europe, and North America, thereby disrupting the Chinese concentrated supply chain. We are extremely grateful for the support from our growing international investor base. Our next milestone is the commissioning of Sicona's pilot production plant at our site in Wollongong and leveraging its larger-scale production capacity to qualify our materials with global battery producers and conduct larger-scale battery testing programs." Alexandra Clunies-Ross, Artesian cleantech portfolio manager commented: "From the onset, we were very impressed by the Sicona team's combination of technical and commercial acumen, their clear understanding of the battery materials market and supply chains, and the challenges to scaling new materials technologies from the laboratory into commercial production. We are impressed with their fast growth and are pleased to continue supporting Christiaan, Andrew, and the Sicona team." Kevin Wang, Vice President at Riverstone Holdings said: "We are excited to support Sicona with this funding round as it is looking to scale its ground-breaking battery materials technology and leverage its successes into the fast-growing markets developing for lithium-ion batteries in Europe and the United States." Zarmeen Pavri, Partner at SDGx Ventures: "At SDGx, we invest in deep tech companies that have the potential to create a meaningful and measurable impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions whilst scaling up to transform the largest industries in the world. Sicona clearly has that potential."

Get the latest news about renewable energy & solar energy, views & updates from everywhere in India on Energetica. Covering latest Industry information on Indian Solar, Wind, Hydro, EV & other Conventional Power News, Views, Opinion of the think-tankers.

#Investment & Trading #Sicona Battery Technologies Pty Ltd #AU$3.7 million

0 notes

moneycafe · 3 years

Text

IPV, PointOne Capital leads seed round in healthcare discovery platform DCode Care

India-based data-driven healthcare discovery platform DCode Care today said it has raised an undisclosed amount in a Seed funding round led by angel investment firm Inflection Point Ventures and PointOne Capital. This is IPV’s 25th for 2021 and is likely to invest Rs 155 crore across 60 plus startups. The development comes six months after the startup raised Pre-Seed financing from an early-stage…

View On WordPress

0 notes

paynxt360 · 2 years

Text

Alternative lending firms are raising capital to drive business growth

Alternative lending startups are making their way into the global banking industry. The ability to leverage technology and offer more seamless and efficient lending services to consumers and MSMEs that are underserved is allowing alternative lending firms to penetrate the market and find success. Notably, the growth of these players, especially in markets where access to credit is lagging among consumers and MSMEs, is posing a major threat to incumbent banks.

To further accelerate their growth and boost their loan books, alternative lending platforms around the world are raising investment from venture capital and private equity firms. For instance,

Money View, an India-based digital lending startup, is reportedly in talks to raise US$150 million in a new Series E investment round, at a post-money valuation of more than US$1 billion. Notably, the firm also raised US$75 million in its Series D funding round at a valuation of US$625 million in March 2022. Tiger Global, Evolvence India, Winter Capital, and Accel were among the investors that participated in the Series D round. For FY 22, the startup has claimed to have an annualized revenue run rate of INR 6 billion. Currently, the firm offers several different products, including instant personal loans, cards, and BNPL services. The Series E funding round will assist the firm in further accelerating its growth in the Indian market where demand for credit is growing significantly.

In Indonesia, JULO, a digital lending firm, announced that the firm raised US$80 million in debt and equity round, which was led by Credit Saison. A growing number of Indonesians are using the digital lending platform to support their financial lives. Notably, 72% of the loans are utilized for home renovation, business capital, and education. In 2021, the funds disbursed by the firm increased by three times, and in 2022, the firm is targeting a growth of five times. Notably, the firm is planning to use the capital in a two-pronged approach. While US$30 million will go towards product development, customer acquisition, and marketing, US$50 million is reserved for driving the growth of its loan book.

Along with B2C lending firms, startups operating in the B2B segment are also raising funding rounds to drive credit access among MSMEs that are finding it difficult to access credit from formal banking institutions. For instance,

In September 2022, Numida, an Uganda-based digital lender, announced that the firm had raised US$12.3 million in pre-Series A debt and equity round, which was led by Serena Ventures. Notably, the firm offers capital to MSMEs, which make up 90% of the businesses in the African continent. With these businesses struggling to get capital from traditional banks due to the lack of collateral type accepted by banks, the growth potential for digital lending players is huge in the region. Over the next 18 months, the firm is planning to double its client base to 40,000 and is also planning to expand into other African markets.

The firm has built its own credit scoring model, which includes MSME sector and cash flow details. While repeat clients get their loans approved immediately, new customers must wait for 24 hours. Since its seed funding round in 2021, the firm has recorded a growth of 7.5 times due to the surge in demand for quick loans. Furthermore, it has issued US$20 million in working capital for MSMEs and has transitioned from issuing US$250,000 a month to US$2 million in a short period. Currently, the firm is offering loans in the range of US$100 to US$5,000. The amount is payable over a month and attracts interest rates ranging from 10% to 16%.

In India as well, the B2B alternative lending segment is gaining increasing momentum, which has resulted in startups raising funding rounds. For instance,

In June 2022, Progcap, the B2B lending platform, announced that the firm had raised US$40 million in a Series C funding round, which was led by Sequoia Capital, Tiger Global Management, and Creation Investments. The June 2022 funding round valued the firm at US$600 million. The firm is currently planning for product expansion and to tap into new industry verticals such as manufacturing, electrical, and electronics.

As of June 2022, the firm has facilitated INR 65 billion in credit and has served more than 700,000 SMEs in the country. With an annualized disbursal of US$1 billion, the firm recorded a growth of 4 times year on year. Going forward, the firm plans to expand its operations beyond India and is also looking to acquire software providers from the short to medium-term perspective.

With rising inflation and interest rates, the demand for working capital is expected to further increase among MSMEs around the world. Consequently, alternative lending players are projected to record strong growth in loan disbursals from the short to medium-term perspective. This will keep driving the growth of the industry and the sector will further attract venture capital dollars over the next three to four years.

#lending digitalending alternativelending marketresearch

0 notes

davidraudales · 4 years

Text

Monthly Funding Recap: India, e-Commerce And Electric Vehicles Raise Supergiant Funding In July

Crunchbase News / Gené Teare / hace 5 días

The startup and venture capital community moves fast. Innovation waits for no one and, as a result, it can be tempting to dash forward without examining trends and news from the recent past..

The data: July 2020

Overall global funding for July is at $26.8 billion, up from July 2019’s $26.1 billion, and above the average for the last 12 months by more than $3 billion.

Venture looks like it is rebounding, with only one other month higher in invested dollars since the beginning of 2019–pre-pandemic December at $29 billion.

However, it is worth noting that a larger concentration of dollars went into rounds above $100 million, reaching $17.6 billion and representing 66 percent of capital deployed. For the 12 months prior to June 2020, rounds above $100 million averaged 50 percent of dollars invested.

What this means for July 2020 is that rounds under $100 million were down by 22 percent when compared to July 2019, with rounds above $100 million increasing by 23 percent.

$20 billion to Reliance Jio

The largest funding round in July goes to India’s Reliance Jio, a telecommunications company with a mobile network of 400 million subscribers, in which major tech giants invested to gain access for commerce, entertainment and services. Reliance Jio raised $4.5 billion from Google–representing 17 percent of the capital raised in July. In total, the company has raised $20 billion since April from the likes of tech giant Facebook and corporate venture firms Qualcomm Ventures and Intel Capital, as well as sovereign wealth funds and a slew of private-equity investors.

New unicorns in July

New unicorns in July–companies valued in a private round at or above $1 billion for the first time–include Oatly, Ro, Remitly, Thrasio, Nxtra Data, Qumulo, Infobip, Sema4 and Innovium. These companies join the ever-growing Crunchbase Private Unicorn Company List of 609 companies as of the end of July. Sectors include alternative food, health, e-commerce, payments and data service platforms.

Of the nine companies, Thrasio reached unicorn status in the shortest amount of time, having raised its first seed round in 2018. As noted in a Crunchbase news article, Thrasio purchases Amazon’s category-leading mom and pop stores–with 60 stores to date building out e-commerce winners. Two other companies achieving fast growth to unicorn status are health care startups Ro and Sema4, both founded in 2017.

Emerging unicorns in July

July’s emerging unicorns–companies valued in a private round between $500 million and less than $1 billion–include biotech company Tizona Therapeutics, live content platform Caffeine, and e-learning platform Vedantu. Our Emerging Unicorn List features 185 companies we actively track as likely candidates to become the next unicorns–provided they are not snapped up before that milestone is reached.

Notable sectors for investment

We selected five sectors for investments in July 2020. These include industries that saw increased funding in the month of July relative to the prior six months’ averages. We also looked at funding to logistics companies, given the impact of Covid-19 on the supply chain.

Health care

Health care funding garnered over $6 billion in July. Some leading fundings in this sector include the following:

Chicago-based VillageMD, a provider of services for primary care physicians, raised $275 million from Walgreens Boots Alliance.

Texas-based Preventice Solutions, a maker of heart monitoring devices, raised $137 million in a round led by Vivo Capital.

Medly Pharmacy, a digital pharmacy platform based in Brooklyn that offers free, same-day prescription delivery, raised a Series B of $100 million led by Greycroft and Volition Capital.

Based in San Francisco, Doctor On Demand, a mobile app that provides on-demand and scheduled visits with U.S.-licensed health care providers, raised a Series D of $75 million led by General Atlantic.

Brooklyn’s Cityblock Health, which addresses the root causes of health issues for underserved urban populations, raised a Series B of $53.5 million led by Kinnevik AB.

Brisbane, California-based Caption Health uses artificial intelligence to interpret ultrasound exams has raised a Series B of $53 million led by Data Collective DCVC.

e-Commerce

e-Commerce and shopping startups raised close to $4 billion in July 2020.

Flipkart, an e-commerce giant out of India that competes with Amazon, raised an additional $1.2 billion from Walmart, which in 2018 invested $16 billion, giving it a majority equity ownership of 77 percent at that time. Also announced in July, Flipkart acquired Walmart India.

Beijing-based Missfresh, an e-commerce platform for high-quality fresh food, raised a whopping $495 million round led by investment bank CICC.

Misfits Market, a subscription service for organically sourced produce out of New Jersey, raised an $85 million Series B from Valor Equity Partners.

Bolt, a San Francisco-based online checkout experience platform for e-commerce, raised a $50 million Series C led by WestCap.

Transportation

Investments in electric vehicle companies led the transportation sector in July 2020.

Rivian, an electric truck manufacturer based in Michigan that has yet to launch a product, raised a private-equity round of $2.5 billion led by T. Rowe Price, which had led a group of investors in a $1.3 billion round for the company in December.

Guangzhou-based Xpeng Motors, an electric vehicle manufacturer, raised a $500 million Series C round.

Based in Alberta, Canada, Drivewyze, a mobile driving solution for the transportation industry in North America, raised $60 million in a round led by Sageview Capital.

Logistics

With the supply chain impacted by COVID-19, logistics providers raised large rounds in July.

Zongteng Network, a Shenzhen-based provider of cross-border shipping and fulfillment solutions for e-commerce, raised a $71 million Series C led by Taikang Life Insurance.

Shanghai-based FineEx, an e-commerce warehouse integration service, raised $71 million in a Series D round led by Baidu Capital.

Palo Alto, California’s Dexterity, which builds robots for logistics, warehousing and supply chain operations, came out of stealth raising a $56 million Series A.

Sales and marketing

Sales and marketing startups raised just under $500 million in July, matching average funding for the first six months of 2020. These investments range from customer service engagement platforms to digital platforms focused on helping marketers grow their customer base.

San Francisco’s enterprise contact center platform Talkdesk , with more than 1,800 customers in 75 countries, raised a $143 million Series C.

New York-based Ceros, an interactive content creation platform for marketers and designers, raised $100 million in a private-equity round led by Sumeru Equity Partners.

Chorus.ai, a San Francisco-based conversation intelligence platform for sales teams, raised a $45 million Series C in a round led by Georgian Partners.

Berlin based zeotap, which helps brands understand their customers, raised a $42 million Series C.

Insider, a Singapore-based platform that helps digital marketers drive growth, raised a $32 million Series C.

IPOs in July

The IPO market opened up in June with a continued push into July. There were 20 venture-backed companies that went public in July, according to our records. Beijing-based electric vehicle company Li Auto raised $1.1 billion, valuing the company at $10 billion. The next biggest raise was for GoHealth, a health insurance comparison platform that raised $913 million, valuing the company at close to $6.6 billion.

Acquisitions in July

In July, we tracked $7.5 billion in 93 venture-backed acquisitions. While the majority of companies do not disclose their price, the higher-priced acquisition amounts are typically disclosed. The largest acquisition in July was when Uber acquired Postmates for $2.65 billion–both companies are based in the Bay Area.

In conclusion

As our world shifts to remote, tech is stepping up to fill the gap by providing solutions for rapid digitization. With investors more active than ever, the public markets opening up, and acquirers looking for opportunities, we anticipate increased activity in the months ahead.

Methodology

Pro tip: Crunchbase Pro allows users to easily query the dataset. Here are some useful queries used in this report. See the Crunchbase Pro list for July’s global funding. Pro users can save the list to their account, filter by location, and match it against target customers. View the full list of private unicorns here and the list of emerging unicorns here. Learn about companies that recently went public and perform Pro searches for recent venture-backed acquisitions here.

Funding rounds included in this report are seed, angel, venture, corporate venture and private-equity rounds in venture-backed companies.

Please note that all funding values are given in U.S. dollars unless otherwise noted. Crunchbase converts foreign currencies to U.S. dollars at the prevailing spot rate from the date funding rounds, acquisitions, IPOs and other financial events are reported. Even if those events were added to Crunchbase long after the event was announced, foreign currency transactions are converted at the historic spot price.

Illustration: Dom Guzman

0 notes

abangtech · 4 years

Text

Cendana Capital, which has been backing seed funds for a decade, has $278 million more to invest

When in 2010, former VC Michael Kim set out to raise a fund that he would invest in a spate of micro VC managers, the investors to which he turned didn’t get it. Why pay Kim and his firm, Cendana Capital, a management fee on top of the management fees that the VC managers themselves charge?

Fast forward to today, and Kim has apparently proven to his backers that he’s worth the extra cost. Three years after raising $260 million across a handful of vehicles whose capital he plugged into up-and-coming venture firms, Kim is now revealing a fresh $278 million in capital commitments, including $218 million for Cendana’s fourth flagship fund, and $60 million that it will be managing expressly for the University of Texas endowment.

We talked with Kim last week about how he plans to invest the money, which differs slightly from how he has invested in the past.

Rather than stick solely with U.S.-based seed-stage managers who are raising vehicles of $100 million or less, he will split Cendana into three focus areas. One of these will remain seed-stage managers. A smaller area of focus — but one of growing importance, he said — is pre-seed managers who are managing $50 million or less and mostly funding ideas (and getting roughly 15% of each startup in exchange for the risk).

A third area of growing interest is in international managers in cities where seed-stage startups can now reliably find follow-on financial support. In fact, Kim says Cendana has already backed small venture firms in Australia (Blackbird Ventures), China (Cherubic Ventures, which is a cross-border investor that is also focused on the U.S.), Israel (Entree Capital), and India (Saama Capital), among other spots.

Altogether, Cendana is now managing around $1.2 billion. For its services, it charges its backers a 1% management fee and 10% of its profits atop the 2.5% management fee and 20% “carried interest” that his fund managers collect.

“To be extremely clear about it and transparent,” said Kim, “that’s a stacked fee that’s on top of what our [VC] fund managers charge. So Cendana LPs are paying 3.5% and 30%.” An observer “might think that seems pretty egregious,” he continued. “But a number of our LPs are either not staffed to go address this market or are too large to actually write smaller checks to these seed funds. And we provide a pretty interesting value proposition to them.”

That’s particularly true, Kim argues, when contrasting Cendana with other, bigger fund managers.

“A lot of these well-known fund of funds are asset gatherers,” he says. “They’re not charging carried interest. They’re in it for the management fee. They have shiny offices around the world. They have hundreds of people working at them. They’re raising billion-dollar-plus kind of funds. And they’re putting 30 to 50 names into each one, so in a way they become index funds.” The problem, says Kim: “I don’t think venture is really an asset class. Unlike an ETF that’s focused on the S&P 500, venture capital is where a handful of fund managers capture most of the alpha. Our differentiation is that we’re creating very concentrated portfolios.”

How concentrated? Cendana typically holds anchor positions in up to 12 funds, plus makes $1 million bets on another handful of more nascent managers that it will fund further if they prove out their theses.

Some of the managers that Cendana has backed have outgrown the outfit from an assets standpoint. Cendana caps its investments in funds that are $100 million or less in size. Over time, however, it has backed 22 seed-stage managers, including 11.2 Capital, Accelerator Ventures, Angular Ventures, Bowery Capital, Collaborative Fund, Forerunner Ventures, Founder Collective, Freestyle Capital, IA Ventures, L2 Ventures, Lerer Hippeau, MHS Capital, Montage Ventures, Moxxie Ventures, Neo, NextView Ventures, Silicon Valley Data Capital, Spider Capital, Susa Ventures, Uncork VC (when it was still SoftTech VC), Wave Capital and XYZ Ventures.

As for its pre-seed fund managers, Cendana has been the anchor investor in roughly 10 outfits, including Better Tomorrow Ventures, Bolt VC, Engineering Capital, K9 Ventures, Mucker Capital, Notation Capital, PivotNorth Capital, Rhapsody Venture Partners, Root Ventures, and Wonder Ventures.

For those curious about its returns, Kim says that Cendana’s very first fund, a $28.5 million vehicle, is “marked at north of 3x” and “that’s net of everything.”

He’s optimistic that the firm’s numbers will look even better over time.

According to Kim, Cendana currently has 38 so-called unicorns in its broader portfolio. It separately hold stakes in 160 companies that are valued at more than $100 million.

Source

The post Cendana Capital, which has been backing seed funds for a decade, has $278 million more to invest appeared first on abangtech.

from abangtech https://abangtech.com/cendana-capital-which-has-been-backing-seed-funds-for-a-decade-has-278-million-more-to-invest/

0 notes

mongleelifestory · 4 years

Text

The Brief: Spotlight on stewardship, circular plastic investments, donor-advised COVID investing, social housing in the U.K., fintech in Nigeria

‘Stewardship’ under scrutiny as the shareholder season gets started. Even before the COVID crisis, this year’s annual general meeting season was shaping up as pivotal. The springtime ritual in which corporate directors meet shareholders face-to-face was to be the first since 181 CEOs signed a Business Roundtable pledge to elevate stakeholders – employees, customers, supplies and communities – along with shareholders. BlackRock warned corporations that the $7 trillion asset manager might vote against management at companies that failed to make progress on climate risk and sustainability. Both BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, and JPMorgan Chase, the world’s biggest bank, signed the Climate Action 100+ pledge to pressure the biggest emitters of greenhouse gases. The face-to-face part won’t happen, of course, but COVID-19 has only raised the stakes for corporations facing hundreds of shareholder resolutions on climate, social and governance action. Says As You Sow’s Andrew Behar, “This year can be an inflection point.”

The most engaged investors are now scrutinizing how companies have protected and treated employees through the crisis and whether they have reevaluated share buybacks after many companies were caught without adequate cash reserves. More than 60 resolutions call on companies to explain how their strategies align with the Paris climate accord. Another 40 resolutions, prepared well before the pandemic, seek fair pay and equitable working conditions. BlackRock and Goldman Sachs face shareholder proposals asking for plans to implement the stakeholder-centric pledge itself. BlackRock is under particular scrutiny from large institutional investors, for whom ‘stewardship’ has become an important way to mitigate negative externalities of corporate behavior. Longtime shareholder advocates will believe in the changes when they see them. The COVID crisis “is really a wild card,” says Proxy Impact’s Michael Passoff. “We may see some interesting responses from companies.”

Dealflow: Follow the Money

Circulate Capital invests in plastic recyclers in India and Indonesia. Singapore-based Circulate Capital spun off from Closed Loop Partners nearly two years ago to tackle plastic waste in Asia. Five countries are responsible for half of the plastic waste that ends up in oceans worldwide, and Circulate founder Rob Kaplan wanted to seize the “opportunity to build new value chains out of waste streams.” With a $15 million anchor investment from PepsiCo Foundation, the firm raised $106 million from Procter & Gamble, Dow, Danone, Unilever, Coca-Cola Company, Chevron Phillips and others. Its first investments commit $6 million to Mumbai-based Lucro Plastecycle, which repurposes hard-to-recycle plastic scraps into new products like vehicle upholstery and steering-wheel covers; and Jakarta-based Tridi Oasis, a female-led company that recycles common PET plastic into “flakes” for textiles or new packaging materials.

· COVID considerations. To back up its equity investments, Circulate is providing short-term lines of credit to help portfolio companies weather the coronavirus business disruption. “If the current health and economic crisis has taught us anything, it’s that we need to future proof our local supply chains and economies,” Kaplan said. “The resilience of critical infrastructure like waste and recycling goes hand-in-hand with protecting the health and livelihoods of our communities.” The U.S. International Development Finance Corporation and USAID provided partial guarantees.

ImpactAssets sets COVID Response Fund to channel donor-advised funds to unmet needs. The fund will leverage the nonprofit investment manager’s network of investors to move flexible capital to companies and individuals hardest hit by the pandemic. A key strategy will be channeling charitable dollars to community banks and community development financial institutions, or CDFIs. Through the COVID Response Fund, “our family office is supporting mission-driven companies rapidly delivering products and services related to the crisis, as well as stabilizing affected social enterprises and small businesses,” says Blue Haven Initiative’s Liesel Pritzker Simmons, an ImpactAssets board member.

· Impact step up. ImpactAssets says it has more than $1 billion in investment opportunities in its pipeline. “We have been thrilled to see impact investors leaning in at record levels to support critical needs in this moment of crisis,” said ImpactAssets’ Margret Trilli. Trilli says the nonprofit saw 3.5 times the normal volume in grants in the first quarter, and double the number of investments.

Cheyne Capital raises £150 million to build and preserve U.K. social housing. The London-based asset management firm will develop and acquire affordable housing properties, then lease the properties to non-profit housing associations and local government ‘councils.’ The open-ended Cheyne Impact Real Estate Trust is Cheyne Capital’s second affordable housing fund.

Okra raises $1 million to improve Nigeria’s fintech infrastructure. For all of Africa’s fintech buzz and controversy, there are still significant obstacles to widespread access to financial services. Lagosbased Okra raised pre-seed funding from early stage fintech venture fund TLcom Capital to integrate mainstream banks with digital payment apps.

FINCA Impact Finance secures $15 million loan facility from Calvert Impact Capital. The network of 20 microfinance institutions will use the revolving facility to lend to subsidiaries supporting microentrepreneurs and small businesses across the world. It will also use a portion of the funds for working capital and long-term investments, including network-wide digitization.

Agents of Impact: Follow the Talent

Community Investment Management hires Bernhard Eikenberg, ex- of Bamboo Capital, as a partner; Jeff Hilton, ex- of Opportunity Fund, as managing director of investments and finance; and Louis Mrachek, ex- of Aura Financial, as chief credit officer… New Forests is hiring a senior analyst of investments in San Francisco… Bamboo Capital reports that over the past year, its portfolio companies impacted an additional 32 million lives in developing markets, supported an additional 5,000 jobs (including 1,900 jobs for women) and displaced an additional 680,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions.

0 notes