Page 17 - Fundings

Nepal Investment Summit concludes; funding worth NRs 9 billion approved

Investments worth more than NRs 9 billion have been approved for four projects in Nepal as a key investment summit, which witnessed the participation of hundreds of investors from various countries, including India, concluded here on Monday. Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' Sunday inaugurated the third edition of the Nepal Investment Summit 2024 with the theme 'Emerging Nepal'. "The third investment summit attracted 2,500 guests, including 800 potential international investors, Sushil Bhatta, CEO of the Investment Board Nepal (IBN), said at the closing ceremony here on Monday. Altogether, 152 projects were showcased and good responses were shown by the investors, Bhatta said. Investments worth more than NRs 9 billion have been approved for four projects in Nepal, officials said. Some 12 foreign investors, including those from India, China, the US and the UK, directly met with Prime Minister Prachanda during the two-day summit. Thirty delegates held meetings with top .

Arcelormittal Nippon Steel India in talks for $1 bn loan to fund growth

The steel firm had earlier held loan negotiations with a few other lenders but they couldn't agree on the cost of funding, said the people

Garden of Joy raises Rs 84 lakh in seed round led by Inflection Point

Landscaping startup will use the money to expand in six cities in South India, develop technology

Sharad Sanghi's AI cloud startup Neysa raises $20 mn in seed funding

Neysa is the second entrepreneurial stint of Sharad Sanghi, considered to be pioneer of the Indian cloud computing space

Cornerstone Ventures launches second fund worth $200 mn for B2B startups

Through the fund, investments will be made across stages, with a focus on early growth stage VC bets

85% dip in top venture capital funding in 2023; hopes up for 2024

Over the past two years, prominent global VC firms have also divested from some of their investments

Blackstone to invest $2 bn annually in India with primary focus on infra

PE major wants India to expedite M&A clearances and enhance commercial dispute resolution

Vi shareholders approve Rs 20,000 cr fundraise through securities issuance

The telco is looking to raise up to Rs 45,000 crore through equity & debt

GenAI startup Vodex raises $2 mn in seed funding round for biz expansion

Vodex helps businesses connect with customers via human-like phone conversations, driving sales and improving customer engagement

Hiring in healthtech sector to grow 15-20% despite funding slowdown: Report

Even as the healthtech sector in the country has been facing an investment downturn, hiring in the segment is expected to grow by 15-20 per cent, a report said on Monday. The healthtech sector in India demonstrates resilience with a 9 per cent increase in employment in 2023, over the previous year despite a 'funding winter' impacting the flow of investments and hiring sentiments, according to HR services company CIEL HR's 'Health Tech Sector Employment Trends' report. The healthtech sector is bound to grow rapidly due to the socio-economic changes in India and the competitive advantages we offer for the world in patient care as well as in manufacturing and research and development (R&D), and there has been an upswing in hiring in the recent times on a consistent basis, CIEL HR CEO Aditya Narayan Mishra said. "Despite the 'funding winter', the hiring numbers have grown and the outlook for the year ahead (2024) is significantly stronger," he added. Hiring outlook for 2024 remains ...

NHPC board approves proposal for raising Rs 6,100 cr funds through NCDs

State-owned NHPC on Wednesday said its board has approved a proposal to raise Rs 6,100 crore in debt in 2024-25. The Board of Directors of NHPC in its meeting held on Wednesday considered and approved the proposal for raising of debt up to Rs 6,100 crore during 2024-25 through non-convertible Corporate Bonds in one or more tranches on private placement basis, term loans or external commercial borrowing in tranches, a BSE filing said. Further, the Board of Directors in the meeting has also given its in-principle approval for closure of Loktak Downstream Hydroelectric Corporation Limited (a Subsidiary Company of NHPC Limited and Joint Venture with Govt. of Manipur), subject to the approval of DIPAM, Ministry of Power and Govt. of Manipur, it stated.

Startups wait for spring: Funding winter appears over but challenges ahead

After battling funding winter and scandals, the sector focuses on profitability

Avanse raises Rs 1,000 cr from investors led by Mubadala Investment Company

Avanse Financial Services, an education-focused non-banking financial company (NBFC), on Tuesday announced that it has raised primary capital of Rs 1,000 crore to fund business growth. This round of funding was led by Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala), the Abu Dhabi-based investment company, with participation from Avendus PE Investment Advisors Private Ltd via its fund Avendus Future Leaders Fund II, the NBFC said in a statement. The fund infusion will enable Avanse to strengthen its position in the rapidly evolving education financing segment by focusing on creating unique customer experiences and achieving sustained profitable growth, it said. The company has also provided growth and working capital to Indian educational institutions. As of December 2023, the company's assets under management (AUM) stands at Rs 12,147 crore.

NTPC signs aggrement with Japan's JBIC for Rs 1,650 crore funding

State-owned power giant NTPC on Tuesday said it has inked a pact with a Japanese agency for sourcing foreign currency loans of USD 200 million (JPY 30 billion or around Rs 1,650 crore).. Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), a government policy-based financial institution, will provide 60 per cent of the facility amount and the balance amount will be provided by other commercial banks under JBIC guarantee, a statement said. The agreements have been signed for a JPY 15 billion loan each for NTPC Ltd and NTPC Renewables Energy Ltd (NREL), it added. The facility has been extended under JBIC's initiative entitled Global action for Reconciling Economic growth and Environment preservation' (GREEN) for projects which ensure the conservation of the global environment.. The loan proceeds shall be utilized by NTPC for funding part of its capex requirements for Flue Gas Desulphurization (FGD) which substantially reduces the SOx emission in the flue gases of thermal power stations a

CPR CEO Yamini Aiyar quits two months after govt annuls FCRA permit

Yamini Aiyar, the CEO of Centre for Policy Research, will step down from her current role on March 31. Dr Srinivas Chokkakula, a senior fellow at the think tank, will succeed Aiyar

Ultrahuman raises $35 mn to accelerate growth, research in health space

By collating a large set of biomarkers on an integrated platform across a range of products, Ultrahuman is able to create a grand unified view of the human body

Pocket FM's valuation crosses $750 mn, bags $103 mn in Series D funding

The audio platform secures $103 mn in Series D funding. Funds to drive global growth, enhance content library, and advance Gen AI

Annual climate finance requirement estimated to cross $10 trn by 2050: CAG

The annual climate finance requirements are estimated to cross USD 10 trillion by 2050, and failure to meet the funding demands will intensify socio-economic consequences related to climate-linked disasters, Comptroller and Auditor General of India Girish Chandra Murmu on Tuesday. Climate financing is key to collective efforts to move towards a more resilient and sustainable future, he said while addressing a one-day seminar on Climate Financing here. "As climate change intensifies, so does the urgency for robust climate finance mechanisms to fund adaptation, mitigation, and resilience-building efforts worldwide," he said. The CAG further stated that annual climate finance needs are estimated to increase substantially, reaching well beyond USD 10 trillion annually by 2050. "Failing to meet these financial demands will exacerbate the rise in global temperatures, simultaneously intensifying socio-economic consequences of climate-related disasters. Unfortunately, despite the stark ...

IFCI board okays to raise Rs 500 cr from govt via issuance of equity shares

State-owned IFCI on Tuesday said its board has approved a proposal for raising up to Rs 500 crore capital through the issuance of equity shares to the government. "12,39,77,188 number of Equity Shares will be issued for an amount aggregating up to Rs 500 crore," IFCI said in a regulatory filing. These shares would be issued subject to the approval of Shareholders at the Extraordinary General Meeting to be held on April 18, 2024, it said. Following the capital infusion, the government holding in the oldest financial institution would increase. Currently, the Government of India holds 70.32 per cent stake in IFCI. The government had infused Rs 100 crore in 2022 in long-term infrastructure financier IFCI Ltd. The Industrial Finance Corporation of India was set up by the government on July 1, 1948 as the first Development Financial Institution in the country. IFCI was provided access to low-cost funds through the central bank's Statutory Liquidity Ratio or SLR which in turn enabled i

Tata Steel plans to raise up to Rs 2,700 crore capital through debentures

Tata Steel on Tuesday said a board committee has approved raising of up to Rs 2,700 crore through debentures. "The Committee of Directors (constituted by the Board of Directors of Tata Steel Ltd), at its meeting held today i.e., March 19, 2024, considered and approved the issue of NCDs," the steel major said in a regulatory filing. The date of allotment of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) is March 27 and its maturity date is March 26, 2027. Tata Steel group is among the top global steel companies with an annual crude steel capacity of 35 million tonnes per annum. Shares of the company declined 0.64 per cent to Rs 148.65 apiece on the BSE.