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One quick thing: Blinkit launches Bistro, a separate 10-minute food delivery app, to compete with Zepto Cafe 

In today’s newsletter:

• Rebel Foods raises $210M, early investors exit 
• Funding for SolarSquare, Snapmint, FirstClub
• BlueStone, Aye Finance ready IPO plans

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Funding served!

Rebel Foods, the operator of cloud kitchen brands like Faasos, Behrouz Biryani, and Oven Story, has raised $210 million in its Series G round, combining primary capital and secondary share sales.

• The round, largely a secondary transaction (around 75%), saw early backers such as Coatue and Lightbox take an exit, we were told
  
  
• Singapore’s Temasek led the primary portion, with participation from existing investor Evolvence

Moneycontrol first reported on this development in August, highlighting Rebel Foods’ negotiations with Temasek.

The funding follows Rebel Foods’ strides in improving its financial health.

• Revenue rose 19% to Rs 1,420 crore in FY24 from Rs 1,195 crore in FY23
  
  
• Losses down by 42%, from Rs 657 crore in FY23 to Rs 378 crore in FY24

Monthly cash burn halved from Rs 50 crore in FY23 to Rs 25 crore in FY24, thanks to workforce reductions and streamlined spending, we had reported.

Rebel, which competes with Binny Bansal-backed Curefoods, Tiger Global-funded Eatclub and others, is betting on an omnichannel approach.  

• Plans to establish 250 physical outlets to complement its cloud kitchen model
  
  
• It even toyed with the idea of an offline food court, where all its nine brands will be available under the same roof.

Rebel currently operates over 450 kitchens across 70 cities in India, the UAE, and the UK.

Dig deeper

Not just Rebel Foods, the wider Indian startup ecosystem continues to sizzle, with a flurry of other funding announcements.

Full-stack solar installation startup SolarSquare raised $40-million in Series B funding round.

• The round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners with participation from Lightrock

Existing investors, including Elevation Capital, Chris Sacca’s Lowercarbon, Nithin Kamath’s Rainmatter, and Gruhas Proptech, also participated in the round.

• With the fresh funding, SolarSquare plans to expand its reach from 20 cities to 50 in the next two years

Snapmint, the no-cost EMI and buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) platform, raised $18 million in a funding round led by Prashasta Seth of Prudent Investment Managers.

• The funds will be used to integrate Snapmint with additional shopping portals, expand its merchant network, and scale up its balance sheet 

In October of 2022, Snapmint raised around $21 million in an equal mix of equity and debt from existing investors like Prudent Investment’s Seth.

FirstClub, a member-only rapid delivery startup founded by former Flipkart executive Ayyappan R, has raised $8 million.

• The round was led by Accel and RTP Global, with participation from investors including Binny Bansal and Kunal Shah

FirstClub plans to focus on delivering high-quality packaged foods, fresh produce, and other premium items to India’s affluent consumer base.

• The company will only tap the top 10% of India’s population, largely the ones with an annual household income of over Rs 15 lakh

• For the first 12 months, the company will only focus on Bengaluru and then slowly expand to Delhi and Mumbai

IPO action from Dalal Street continues with Bluestone and Aye Finance firming up plans to go public.

Jewellery startup BlueStone has filed for an IPO where it will raise Rs 1,000 crore in primary capital, draft papers showed. 

• The issue also consists of an offer for sale (OFS) component where investors like Saama, Kalaari Capital and others will offload a total of 2.39 crore shares
  

BlueStone will use the proceeds for working capital requirements and other general corporate purposes, filings showed. 

• Once listed, it will join giants like Titan Company, Kalyan Jewellers India, Senco Gold, and Thangamayil Jewellery

Meanwhile, SME-focused non-banking finance company (NBFC) Aye Finance secured board approval to raise up to Rs 1,450 crore through an IPO.

• The IPO will consist of a fresh issue of equity shares worth up to Rs 885 crore, along with an offer for sale (OFS) of Rs 565 crore

In the run-up to the IPO, the firm rejigged its board, with Sanjay Sharma continuing to lead the charge as the managing director.

Aye Finance closed FY24 with a loan book of Rs 4,473 crore, marking an annual growth rate of 46% from FY18-FY24.

• The company follows a targeted approach in offering working capital finance to SMEs with annual turnovers of Rs 10 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

• It reported a net profit of Rs 161 crore on total income of Rs 1,066 crore

Find out more

• Google unveiled a new version of its flagship AI model, Gemini, aimed at powering the next generation of virtual agents.
  
  
• Malaysia launched a national AI office aimed at shaping policies and addressing regulatory issues, as it looks to establish itself as a regional hub for AI development.

IIT Madras researchers have unveiled a groundbreaking achievement in neuroscience. 

• Researchers have created the world's largest 3D high-resolution images of a human fetal brain

• The dataset, named DHARANI, captured 5,132 brain sections at cellular resolution 

This open-source resource could revolutionise our understanding of brain development, neurological disorders, and cognitive growth. Dig deeper 

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