BUSINESS
Meet Sanjiv Rangrass, the investor behind the ITC mafia in India’s startup ecosystem
The ITC veteran and angel investor said working with the unicorn’s founders, whom he hired and mentored, is the best ‘gurudakshina’ he could get. Rangrass also revealed the role he would play in Zetwerk’s launch into a ‘larger league.'
BUSINESS
Which agritech segments got the most funds in FY21?
BUSINESS
Global Fintech Fest: Founders get a starry reception, regulators talk business
Global Fintech Fest held in Mumbai last week gave fintechs the much-needed adrenaline shot as they battle slowdown and regulatory squeeze and provided a platform to showcase why their growth is crucial to change India’s financial landscape.
BUSINESS
PhonePe CEO Sameer Nigam makes renewed pitch for MDR, warns there is no path to recovery otherwise
Nigam pointed out that when payment modes are made free of cost there is an underlying assumption that companies involved in these businesses will have alternate sources of revenue. However, that may be possible for banks, but not startups, he added.
BUSINESS
A difficult candidate test, broken job promises and refund dispute: Unacademy’s Relevel comes under fire
With the growth engine sputtering, funding slowing down and the spectre of regulation looming large, there are many curveballs that Unacademy and its peers will have to grapple with in the coming months. At a time like this, Gaurav Munjal has been extremely bullish on Relevel
BUSINESS
Fintechs need to ‘live' compliance, knowing regulations is not enough: Axis Bank MD & CEO Amitabh Chaudhry
Amitabh Chaudhry, MD & CEO of Axis Bank, added that while fintechs agree they understand the meaning of the word ‘compliance’, it is time they consciously start making it a part of their business model
BUSINESS
MC Explains | Byju’s: How does it earn money and where does it spend?
This year, the company thus changed it to ‘sale of edutech products.’ Byju’s got Rs 1,848.74 crore from sale of edutech products that comprises tech embedded devices, tablets, SD cards and laptops. Sale of edutech products still accounts for the most of Byju’s revenue.
BUSINESS
Study abroad platform Leverage Edu to double workforce of 1,500 in next 12 months
This move comes at the back of reports that highlight an expected growth in the number of Indian students attending foreign universities.
BUSINESS
Edtech unicorn upGrad acquires corporate training startup Centum Learning
In a recent interview with Moneycontrol, Kumar said the company’s strategy behind the acquisition spree is creating a lifelong learning journey for their users, which starts from post-K through 12 (post-kindergarten to 12th grade) to the 55-60 age group.
MCMINIS
VC funding below $1 bn for the second month
BUSINESS
Threat calls to employees, stranded students, helpless parents: A bitter lesson in Lido Learning's bankruptcy
Financial creditors of the once celebrated edtech startup may have to take over 80 percent haircut on their dues while shareholders, parents and employees may get nothing
BUSINESS
Tiger Global-backed edtech firm Scaler to hire over 600 employees by December 2022
The company said it will recruit staff across the sales, business-to-business (B2B) enterprise, instructors, and operations teams. According to Scaler, it currently has over 1,800 employees, and the hiring spree will expand its workforce by 35 percent.
BUSINESS
Accel-backed Orange Health announces first ESOP, equity buyback worth $1 mn
Half of the $1 million buyback will constitute ESOPs while the other half would be equity held by its investors.
BUSINESS
Retail-tech startup Daalchini raises $4 million in funding led by Unicorn India Ventures
The company said the funds will primarily be used for research and development (R&D) of Daalchini’s autonomous retail solutions.
BUSINESS
Tiger Global-backed Ninjacart sets up advisory board, ropes in former agriculture and IT secretaries, others
Other members of the newly formed board are Prakash Bakshi, former chairman of National Bank For Agriculture And Rural Development (NABARD), and Anand Sinha, retired deputy governor of the Reserve Bank of India
BUSINESS
B2B food processing platform Suite42 raises Rs 34 crore from Omnivore, Orios
The startup plans to use the seed funding for talent acquisition, launching raw material financing, and piloting exports.
BUSINESS
B2B unicorn Zetwerk to induct ITC veteran Sanjiv Rangrass to its board
The B2B unicorn said that Sanjiv Rangrass, who is the former chief executive officer (CEO) of ITC Ltd Agribusiness division, will be instrumental in shaping the company’s culture and policies.
BUSINESS
What are boomerang employees?
BUSINESS
Should employees be allowed to moonlight? India Inc is a divided house
IT companies are waiting and watching whether it is making an actual difference on the work front before they take a step. Many feel it is difficult to supervise what a remote worker does during the office or after hours.
BUSINESS
HealthAssure raises Rs 50 cr in funding from Rajiv Dadlani Group, Blume Ventures
The company, in a statement, said it intends to deploy these funds into enhancing its product, strengthening distribution, sharpening its outpatient department (OPD) insurance network, and investing in futuristic primary healthcare technology.
BUSINESS
Agritech startup Loopworm raises $3.4 million in seed funding led by Omnivore, WaterBridge
Loopworm, in a statement, said it plans to use the seed funding for talent acquisition, research and development (R&D) including building laboratories, and to launch its first factory in North Bengaluru for scaling up production.
BUSINESS
Binny Bansal-backed Brightchamps buys Singapore-based startup for $15 million
Schola’s acquisition will help Brightchamps in adding English speaking and communications vertical, a segment that will help it scale faster in its key markets--Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia.
BUSINESS
Edtech unicorn upGrad increases ESOP pool size
upGrad has increased the ESOP pool size to 25,25,810 shares from 22,25,810 shares, the regulatory filings showed.
BUSINESS
How upGrad’s co-founder Mayank Kumar raised one of India’s largest funding rounds this year amid edtech slowdown
