Page 20 - Start- Ups

EV firm Oben raises Rs 40 cr in pre-Series A, will start deliveries in July

EV startup Oben Electric on Tuesday said it has raised Rs 40 crore in an extended pre-series A round and also announced it will start delivering its electric motorcycle Rorr to customers in Bengaluru from next month. The company has so far secured a total funding of Rs 88 crore, including Rs 72 crore (both in equity and debt) in the pre-Series A round, Oben said in a statement. The capital infusion will help the company in scaling up its production capacity at the Bengaluru facility to 100,000 units per year as well as meet the working capital requirements for distribution expansion, it said. The Bengaluru-based EV startup which has a distribution network across major cities in the country, plans to meet the demand of 21,000 pre-orders by scaling up its manufacturing capacity, the company said. The funding round attracted both Institutional investors such as Stride Ventures and Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA), along with new investors including Mumbai Angels and

Byju says firm's $22 billion valuation intact, accepts past mistakes

Raveendran told the shareholders that discussions were on for several weeks regarding the reconstitution of the board to strengthen processes

Edtech major Byju's in talks with investors who quit board to reconsider

Byju's investors had in recent months raised concerns with the company's leadership related to audit delays and how it dealt with issues relating to its lenders, one source said

An ode to start-ups in defence

Policy initiatives like Idex have put the defence industry on the path to self-reliance. It is time now to expand and build upon this success to achieve the broader objective of Make in India

Startup funding dips 71% in 2023; consumer, environment tech sectors shine

Consumer tech start-ups, offering technology-driven products and services to consumers, have managed to corner the most funding at $1.6 billion

Agritech startup Fuselage qualifies for Global Entrepreneurship Programme

Agritech startup Fuselage Innovations has been selected for the UK government's Global Entrepreneurship Programme (GEP), making the Kerala-based company eligible for relocation to the European nation. Fuselage, which provides drone-based agricultural surveillance and spraying solutions, qualifies for mentorship by experienced entrepreneurs and introduction to key networks, courtesy the GEP that lends business support to non-UK firms. Specialising in manufacturing customised UAVs and drones for agricultural aerial plant survey and spraying, Fuselage, which was founded by Devan Chandrasekharan and Devika Chandrasekharan, will be guided under GEP on ways to grow internationally. Once shifted to the UK, that country's Department of Internal Trade will help Fuselage, especially around exporting, according to a statement issued by the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM) here on Monday. The programme will help the 2020-founded Fuselage build capacity in key business areas, according to Devan ..

22% of funding for start-ups went to those in Tier-II, -III cities in 2022

Funding in Tier-I cities is dominated by big players, while smaller cities have less competition - an attractive prospect for smaller investors

FarmersFZ selected for UN's 'Accelerator Programme' for food startups

A Kerala-based startup, Farmers Fresh Zone (FarmersFZ), has been selected for the 'Accelerator Programme by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the UN

Gaming startups form two regulatory bodies; to hold talks with govt

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will make the final decision on the number of self-regulatory bodies and the composition of their boards of directors

StartUp20 engagement group meet ends, asks G20 to invest $1 trn by 2030

The StartUp20 engagement group meeting culminated on Sunday in Goa with a call of action for G20 nations to invest USD one trillion for start up ecosystems by 2030, a top official said. The two-day meeting here ended on a positive note with all participating delegations agreeing on the policy communique drafted during the conference, Dr Chintan Vaishnav, Chair of StartUp20 Engagement Group, told reporters. "The communique would be adopted during the Gurugram meeting scheduled next month. We have put out a call for action for G20 countries to allocate USD one trillion for start up ecosystems by the year 2030," he said. This was the third meeting of the engagement group, with the first two rounds taking place in Hyderabad in Telangana and Sikkim, Vaishnav added. '"We also put out the policy communique on the StartUp20 webpage for people's reactions. This is real example of 'jan bhagidari' (people's participation). The draft policy communique has recommendations for five task forces,

Synergy between start-up ecosystems of India, Saudi Arabia: Prince Al-Saud

Prince Fahad Bin Mansour Al-Saud of Saudi Arabia on Sunday said there are lots of synergies between the start up ecosystems of India and his nation, which can open up several opportunities. Talking to PTI on the sidelines of G20-StartUp20 Engagement Group meeting, which culminated here during the day, Al-Saud said all the participating countries should work towards implementing the recommendations made during the meeting. Delegates from more than 15 countries participated in the the meeting that started on Saturday. "Saudi Arabia and India are the fastest growing economies in the G20 and in the world. There are lots of synergies between the start up ecosystems of the two countries and we can find several opportunities, Al-Saud said. Saudi Arabia had just received a delegation of 20 entrepreneurs from India and it was assured of all possible help for tie-ups, he said, adding that this was his first visit to the country to explore such opportunities. Al-Saud said he would be back in

G20 Leaders' Summit 2023: The world knocks on a door more than ajar

A rich, many-faceted dialogue is underway in India as part of the G20 meetings, and diplomats hope for a successful summit, never mind the alarm bells

Investors mark down 'unicorn' tag for start-ups, chase real deal

Entrepreneurs, however, also need to realise that down-rounds are not much of a deal

Environment tech startups raised $2.1 bn in FY23 amid funding winter

Late-stage deals accounted for 55% of total investments at $1.2 billion, early-stage funding made up 39% of the share, with these startups raising $831 million

Green energy to agri, winners of Startup India to get 'handholding support'

As a part of the handholding exercise, multiple virtual and physical sessions, delegations, showcases, and programs of specialised support will be organised

Avataar Holdings sells 5% stake in RateGain Travel for Rs 206 crore

Avataar Holdings on Thursday offloaded a 5 per cent stake in RateGain Travel Technologies for Rs 206 crore through an open market transaction. According to the bulk deal data available with the BSE, Avataar Holdings sold 55 lakh shares, amounting to a 5 per cent stake in RateGain Travel Technologies. The shares were disposed of at an average price of Rs 375.02 apiece, taking the transaction value to Rs 206.26 crore. Post the latest transaction, the shareholding of Avataar has been reduced to 2.07 per cent from 7.07 per cent (as of March 2023) equity in RateGain. Shares of RateGain gained 0.76 per cent to close at Rs 379.40 per piece on the BSE.

G20: The third meeting of the Startup20 to take place in Goa on June 3-4

The third meeting of the Startup20 Engagement Group, part of India's G20 presidency, will take place in Goa on June 3-4, an official said on Thursday. Startup20 serves as a prime opportunity to foster collaboration, exchange ideas, and shape the future of start ups and entrepreneurship on a global scale, he said. "The meeting, which will embrace the spirit of 'Sankalpana', a Sanskrit term for collective resolve, brings together international delegates and experienced members of the Indian start up ecosystem. The focal point of the meeting will be to build consensus on the Draft Policy Communique, which the Startup20 recently published asking public for feedback," he added. "The meeting will feature a start up showcase, talks as part of the Startup20 series, cultural experiences and discussions on the implementation and benefits of the ideas outlined in the document," the official said. The Goa Sankalpana event will offer various stimulating sessions, including presentations by task

Kerala govt raises ceiling on purchase of products from startups to Rs 3 cr

The Kerala government has considerably increased the ceiling on purchase of products and services from startups registered with KSUM from Rs 1 crore to Rs 3 crore in its effort to boost the state's startup ecosystem. The raising of the public procurement ceiling on the purchases by government departments, public sector undertakings (PSUs), boards, corporations, and local self-government (LSG) institutions from ventures registered under the Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), was announced by it in a statement on Wednesday. KSUM is the nodal agency of the Kerala government for entrepreneurship development and incubation activities in the state. The increase in the monetary ceiling in public procurement will enable more government departments to leverage innovative technology solutions from startups, it said. As per the government order (GO) issued in this regard, the benefits enjoyed by IT-related startups have been extended to non-IT ventures as well, thereby enabling PSUs, boards, ...

ESOP payouts, buybacks plummet among Indian start-ups amid funding winter

While the funding slowdown has had no significant impact on the issuance of ESOPs, a liquidity crunch has caused the once-overflowing well of ESOP buyback programs to run dry

BlackRock cuts edtech giant Byju's valuation by 62% in a year to $8.4 bn

BlackRock reportedly pegged the value of its 2,279 shares in the company at $4,043,471, estimating Byju's fair value at $8.4 billion as of March 31, 2023