BUSINESS
Funding to Indian startups sinks to a 5-year-low in January as funding winter worsens
At least 15 startups, including the most-funded unicorns, let go of close to 3,000 employees in January, taking the total tally of layoffs to more than 20,000 since the start of 2022
BUSINESS
Tiger Global-backed Vedantu's loss widens to Rs 700 crore in FY22
Vedantu had reported a loss of Rs 616 crore in FY21. It spent Rs 489 crore on employees in FY22, 20 percent more than a year earlier.
BUSINESS
PhonePe management sees operational profitability by 2025
PhonePe will have an EBITDA profit of Rs 1,797 crore in the calendar year 2025, with an EBITDA margin of 19.7 percent, the company's management told audit firm KPMG
BUSINESS
Tiger Global closes zero India startup deals in January for first time in 2 years
Tiger Global turning cautious and going slow on investments suggest a painful period for startups in the country that thrive on private equity and venture capital funding.
BUSINESS
Inside Sharechat’s crisis: absent founders, flurry of management exits, spiralling losses
The company’s top and middle management are hollowing out, revenue has not kept pace with cash burn and Sharechat’s top-tier valuation, and questions are being asked about its business model
BUSINESS
Few takers, teacher exits force Unacademy to defer offline NEET PG institute launch
Prepladder Neuros launch delayed till March as about 14 teachers have resigned over the last four months
BUSINESS
PhonePe raises $350 million from General Atlantic at a valuation of $12 billion
According to PhonePe, the investment marks the first tranche of $1 billion funding round
BUSINESS
GoMechanic fraud: How chasing growth at all costs brought down a rising startup
GoMechanic had all the right mix to be a pioneer in the garage services business. It had the first-mover advantage, IIM A-graduate founders, big names of the VC world either invested or interested, a strong customer base, and a network of nearly 1,000 garages across 40 cities in place. Yet things went downhill.
BUSINESS
Byju's to stop field sales to avoid mis-selling amid rising criticism over sales tactics
The change in sales strategy for Byju's follows the company's meetings with the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) in December, where the company was asked by the child rights' body to make necessary changes to its sales tactics amid complaints of mis-selling and over-selling.
BUSINESS
Unacademy-owned PrepLadder faces legal action from group of teachers over nonpayment of dues
At least six doctor-teachers have decided to file a legal complaint against Unacademy's PrepLadder over nonpayment of dues after the company backed out of conciliation in an ongoing case filed by one doctor-teacher in December
BUSINESS
ShareChat parent fires 600 employees, six months after raising $255 million
The company, however, said that it has laid off close to 500 employees or about 20 percent of its staff.
BUSINESS
Ronnie Screwvala-led upGrad CEO Arjun Mohan steps down
upGrad will not be replacing Mohan and Mayank Kumar, co-founder and managing director of upGrad will be taking over Mohan's responsibilities, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
BUSINESS
Unacademy's Relevel to layoff 40 more employees as it pivots from education biz to tests product app NextLevel
The latest round of layoffs and Relevel's move to shut down its core business further highlights the predicament of the job guarantee vertical, which was struggling since August last year
BUSINESS
PE firms increasing focus on revenue and profitability in funding evaluations: KreditBee’s Madhusudan Ekambaram
In a candid interview with Moneycontrol, KreditBee co-founder and CEO Madhusudan Ekambaram said that he intends to take the company public in three years. He also shared the rationale behind raising funds and provided an overview of the company's revenue and profit numbers.
BUSINESS
Zerodha's net profit nearly doubles to Rs 2,094 crore in FY22 on 80% rise in operating revenue
Zerodha reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 2,094 crore in FY22, up 87 percent from Rs 1,122 crore in FY21 (2020-21). The company's operating revenue surged 82 percent to Rs 4,963 crore in FY22 from a year earlier
BUSINESS
OneCard revenue grows 6-fold to Rs 97 crore in FY22; loss widens to Rs 183 crore
FPL Technologies Pvt, which operates the credit-card platform, reported a revenue of Rs 97.9 crore in FY22 against Rs 16.4 crore in FY21 (2020-21). The company’s net loss, however, widened to Rs 182.8 crore in FY22 from Rs 33.2 crore in FY21 (2020-21), thanks to a massive rise in its marketing expenses
BUSINESS
Study abroad startup Leap Scholar, valued at nearly $1 billion, earns $5.4 million in FY22
Leap Scholar's expenses grew more than 7 times to Rs 121 crore during the year, which led to the firm reporting a widening loss of Rs 80.3 crore for FY22
BUSINESS
Cockroaches in demand as unicorns catch a cold this funding winter
After a tumultuous 2022, as investors and founders gear up for an uncertain 2023, it will be interesting to see who wins the race--mythical unicorn beasts or grounded, immune cockroaches that can outlive a nuclear war
BUSINESS
Messi, mis-selling, sackings, and burning cash: Byju's’ annus horribilis
The startup superstar has gone from hero to zero rather rapidly. Will the picture be somewhat different in 2023? Coming soon to a screen near you
BUSINESS
25,000 past and present Flipkart group employees likely to benefit from $700 million cash payout
The top 20 employees of Flipkart, the most senior and early staffers of the e-commerce giant, will be getting as much as $200 million out of the $700 million payout,
BUSINESS
New unicorns halve in 2022 as startup ecosystem faces funding winter
Compared to last year's total of 542, only 244 new unicorns have been created globally so far in 2022, while only 23 new unicorns have been minted in India this year, compared to 44 in 2021.
BUSINESS
Byju’s to revise refund policy, conduct affordability test of parents before selling courses: NCPCR chief
The NCPCR will meet with Byju's again on Monday as the child rights organisation has requested additional information and documents from the company.
BUSINESS
Flipkart to buy back ESOPs worth $700 million as part of PhonePe hive off
The new share price of Flipkart has been determined at $165.83 per option (previously $189.1), excluding the value of PhonePe. The payout to employees will, however, be at US$43.67 per option, reflecting the increase in the market valuation of PhonePe.
BUSINESS
Tiger Global-backed neobank Jupiter, valued at $710 million, earns Rs 40 lakh from operations in FY22
Jupiter's losses increased to Rs 164 crore in FY22 from Rs 14 crore in FY21 as its employee benefit expenses tripled to Rs 68.6 crore from Rs 17.7 crore a year earlier, show regulatory filings
