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<ul><li><keyword id="10181413" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="bharatagri" source="Orion">BharatAgri</keyword> is a startup that serves farmers in India with customised crop advisory calendars and is also an ecommerce platform.</li><li>Other than Arkam, the latest capital raise round also saw participation from Capria Ventures and existing investors India Quotient, 021 Capital and Omnivore.</li><li>The company has built prediction algorithms that provide advisory customised to crops, region and climatic changes. </li></ul> In every market cycle, select sectors attract more capital as they tend to promise higher growth in the future. After the mega funding boom that platform and online commerce saw, agritech and manufacturing are new boom sectors for private investors now. BharatAgri, an advisory led ecommerce platform for farmers, on Thursday announced that it had raised <keyword id="6793689" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="series-a-funding" source="Orion">Series A funding</keyword> of ₹35 crore ($4.3mn) led by <keyword id="9361494" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="arkam-ventures" source="Orion">Arkam Ventures</keyword>, India’s first early-stage venture fund dedicated to Middle-India startups. Agritech startups are playing a key role in leading the charge when it comes to innovation in the farm sector as they are riddled with inefficiencies. BharatAgri is a leading agri-tech company in India. It is solving the problem of low production and low income from Indian farms. Lack of scientific knowledge and access to affordable crop-inputs at the farm level is the core reason for this problem. BharatAgri is an advisory driven crop-input e-commerce platform for farmers. Farmers get personalised scientific crop calendars for their respective farms that give them real time guidance about how to grow the crop. The company has built prediction algorithms that provide advisory customised to crops, region and climatic changes. Farmers can access this custom advisory that would help them increase farm yield, lower input costs and labour effort. Its ecommerce platform offers 10000+ agricultural products such as fertilisers, seeds, pesticides, insecticides, farming equipment, among others and is delivered pan-India across 20,000 + pin codes. The seamless integration of advisory and ecommerce will enable BharatAgri to increase farmers’ production by 30%, reduce cost by 10% and improve their earning by 100%. Commenting on the fund raise, Siddharth Dialani, Cofounder, BharatAgri said, “In the next 3 years, 50 million+ farmers will use the internet for the first time and we want BharatAgri to be their bridge to the digital era of agri that is now dawning. With 10L+ unique monthly users, 10k+ SKUs, 100+ marketplace partners and 20k+ serviceable pin codes, BharatAgri is making a significant impact on farmers' lives. With this investment, BharatAgri aims to further strengthen its rural supply chain, expand the user base and become the largest and the de facto e-commerce platform for farmers.” The latest round of funding marks Arkam’s third investment in the agri-tech space, furthering its commitment to support builders of Bharat. The round also saw participation from Capria Ventures and existing investors, India Quotient, 021 Capital, and Omnivore. The funds will be used to scale BharatAgri’s ecommerce platform into new geographies and strengthen its last-mile delivery. Rahul Chandra, MD, Arkam Ventures will join the board of the agritech startup. Arkam Ventures is also an investor in Jai Kisan, one of India’s fastest growing rural fintech platforms for farmers and retailers, and Jumbotail, India’s leading B2B food &amp; grocery marketplace and retail platform. Digitisation of the fragmented Indian agri industry is one of the key themes under Arkam’s Middle-India thesis. The fund has been consistently backing early-movers and market winners that are empowering farmers and strengthening the agri-value chain with technology. Talking about the latest investment in BharatAgri, Rahul Chandra, MD, Arkam Ventures said, “Agri inputs is a $44B market in India and suffers from stock outs, misinformation and non-scientific usage behaviour. The quintessential Indian farmer is now seeking digital information and is concerned with farm yields, crop as well as personal safety and household wealth. BharatAgri is a fantastic combination of custom advice and ready assortment of products - reducing confusion around usage of chemical products and giving fastest access to the best quality agri brands.” About BharatAgri Headquartered in Bangalore, BharatAgri is a leading agri-tech company in India. It is solving the problem of low production and low income from Indian farms. Lack of scientific knowledge and access to affordable crop-inputs at the farm level is the core reason for this problem. BharatAgri is an advisory driven crop-input e-commerce platform for farmers. Farmers get personalised scientific crop calendars for their farm, which gives them real time guidance about how to grow the crop. The guidance includes selection of right seeds, fertilisers and pesticides which farmers can buy from the platform. It currently serves more than 20k pincodes and is expanding rapidly to other remote parts of the country. BharatAgri is backed by Arkam Ventures, India Quotient, 021 Capital, Capria Ventures and Omnivore. About Arkam Ventures Started in 2020 by two seasoned venture capitalists, Rahul Chandra (formerly - Co-founder &amp; MD, Helion Venture Partners) and Bala Srinivasa (formerly partner at Kalaari Capital), Arkam is a pioneer in investing in the massive Middle India opportunity. Unlike its predecessors and peers who have largely backed start-ups serving the top of the pyramid, Arkam backs a new generation of founders focused on building tech-led solutions for the next 400 million Indians. From its USD 106 million Fund 1, Arkam has invested in Middle India opportunities across financial services, skilling, food, <keyword id="6355165" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="agriculture" source="Orion">agriculture</keyword>, mobility, healthcare and SaaS. Its portfolio currently consists of 16 new-age companies, including fintech firms such as Jar , and Kreditbee, Food/Agritech companies like Jai-Kisan and Jumbotail, Skilling companies like Smartstaff and Cusmat as well as SaaS companies like Spotdraft and Signzy. The fund recently launched its second fund with a target size of USD 180 Mn. It will continue to focus on existing sectors such as financial services, skilling, food, agriculture, healthcare, mobility, and SaaS as well as identify category leaders in promising areas like Manufacturing Tech and EVs.

BharatAgri raises ₹35 crore in Series A funding led by Arkam Ventures

<ul><li>With Fund II, Arkam Ventures intends to maintain its strategy of creating a focused portfolio based on well-defined investment theses. </li><li>Fund II aims to construct a portfolio consisting of 20 technology <keyword id="428085" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="start-ups" source="Orion">start-ups</keyword>. </li><li>The firm also plans seeking out potential category leaders in emerging domains such as manufacturing tech and electric vehicles (EVs). </li></ul>Arkam Ventures, an <keyword id="1397791" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="early-stage" source="Orion">early-stage</keyword> <keyword id="17820987" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="technology-venture-capital" source="Orion">technology venture capital</keyword> fund, has announced the launch of its Fund II, aiming to raise $180 million. With this new fund, Arkam Ventures intends to maintain its strategy of creating a focused portfolio based on well-defined investment theses. The firm plans to further explore its current sectors of interest while also seeking out potential category leaders in emerging domains such as manufacturing tech, and EVs. The firm will continue its emphasis on financial services, skill development, food, agriculture, healthcare, mobility, and <keyword id="753967" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="software-as-a-service" source="Orion">Software-as-a-Service</keyword> (SaaS) ventures, in the area of middle-India digitisation. Fund II will aim to construct a portfolio consisting of 20 technology startups. The limited partner (LP) base for this fund will be composed of global institutional investors, and family offices. Notably, Arkam's previous Fund I had attracted investors such as British International Investment, SIDBI, Evolvence, Quilvest, US institutional investors, and significant family offices. Arkam Ventures, established in 2020 by venture capitalists Rahul Chandra, and Bala Srinivasa, focuses on investing in the significant <keyword id="3525881" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="middle-india" source="Orion">middle India</keyword> market. In contrast to many other investors who primarily support startups catering to the affluent population, Arkam focuses on a new generation of founders dedicated to developing technology-driven solutions. These startups perceive an opportunity to leverage digital platforms, and India's digital infrastructure (such as UPI, eKYC, and Aadhaar) along with the accelerated digital adoption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. They aim to transform the delivery of essential products and services, making them more accessible, efficient, and affordable. Through its initial Fund 1, valued at USD 106 million, Arkam has assessed prospects in sectors including financial services, skill development, food, agriculture, mobility, healthcare, and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). Its portfolio currently comprises 16 innovative companies, including fintech firms like Jar and Kreditbee, food/agritech companies like Jai-Kisan and Jumbotail, skill development companies like Smartstaff and Cusmat, as well as SaaS companies like Spotdraft and Signzy. Says Rahul Chandra, Managing Director, Arkam, “Six of Arkam's Fund I investments are already leaders in their respective categories. They are redesigning markets with a tech-based business model and scaling rapidly to serve hundreds of millions of customers. We believe the middle India digitisation and SaaS opportunity will lead to the creation of 100 new mega businesses over the next decade.” Arkam plans to utilise Fund II to invest a greater amount of capital, and support its most promising founders, and companies during subsequent funding rounds. Additionally, the fund aims to enhance its portfolio advisory services, specifically concentrating on areas such as organisational structure, go-to-market strategies, and finance and operational aspects.

Tapping early-stage tech companies – Arkam Ventures announces launch of $180 million fund

Bengaluru, Bengaluru-headquartered <keyword id="2461546" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="FinTech">FinTech</keyword> lending startup <keyword id="6557529" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="KreditBee">KreditBee</keyword> on Monday said it has concluded its Series C equity round worth $75 million (about ₹545 crore) from <keyword id="648852" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Premji-Invest">Premji Invest</keyword>, Mirae Asset Naver Asia Growth Fund, Alpine Capital and <keyword id="9361494" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arkam-Ventures">Arkam Ventures</keyword> consisting of both primary and secondary investment. With the current round of fund raise, the company wants to drive credit uptake in the economy especially for the unserved and underserved segment of the population. "With a larger portfolio of loan products, our objective is to provide credit to over 180 million New-to-Credit customers who were not provided formal credit earlier. This investment would help us take more positive steps towards achieving that," <keyword id="229206" type="DOMAIN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Madhusudan">Madhusudan</keyword> E, Co-Founder &amp; CEO of KreditBee, said in a statement. The holding entity previously raised over $43 million cumulatively in equity from marque investors including ICICI Bank and Arkam Ventures. Registered in March 2016, the group entity also holds Krazybee Services Private Limited -- a non-deposit taking non-banking financial company (NBFC-ND-SI). The group launched its flagship brand KreditBee in May 2018, focused on full-stack digital lending for young professionals. The platform specialises in providing digital personal loans and consumer durable loans to both salaried and self-employed. The loan amount disbursed can go as high as ₹2 lakh while the tenures range from two months to 15 months. The company said it currently has over 1,200 employees and a user base of over 20 million with over 4 million credit customers. The platform plans to diversify its product offering by venturing into digitally-enabled secured loans, home loans and credit line. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/mobile/news/samsung-galaxy-s21-ultra-5g-review-the-best-android-smartphone-yet/articleshow/80913148.cms">Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review – the best Android smartphone, yet</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/this-startup-helps-you-watch-shows-shop-online-and-access-the-internet-even-without-a-data-connection/articleshow/80918896.cms">This startup helps you watch shows, shop online and access the internet even without a data connection</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/research/news/worlds-oldest-beer-factory-discovered-in-egypt-was-producing-50000-pints-at-a-time/articleshow/80920087.cms">Drink like an Egyptian: Historians discover the world’s oldest beer factory in Egypt</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/elon-musk-wants-major-holders-of-cryptocurrency-dogecoin-to-sell-most-of-their-coins/articleshow/80920866.cms">Elon Musk wants major holders of cryptocurrency Dogecoin to sell ‘most of their coins’</a>

Lending startup KreditBee gets ₹545 crore from Premji invest, Mirae Asset and others

<ul><li><keyword id="6357120" type="DEFINITION" weightage="20" keywordseo="paytm">Paytm</keyword>’s <keyword id="198636" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Vijay-Shekhar-Sharma">Vijay Shekhar Sharma</keyword> and <keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> co-founder <keyword id="6364080" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="binny-bansal">Binny Bansal</keyword> have invested in <keyword id="9361494" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Arkam-Ventures">Arkam Ventures</keyword> – which was previously called Unitary Helion.</li><li>They have been joined by the likes of Naukri co-founder Sanjeev Bikchandani, MakeMyTrip CEO Rajesh Magow and others to invest in the fund.</li><li>The fund is led by <keyword id="2239766" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rahul-Chandra">Rahul Chandra</keyword> and Bala Srinivasa, both veterans in the VC industry. The fund has closed its first round for ₹325 crore and hopes to raise a total of ₹700 crore. </li></ul>Paytm’s Vijay Shekhar Sharma and Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal have invested in Arkam Ventures – which was previously called Unitary Helion. The Paytm and Flipkart founder were joined by the likes of Naukri co-founder Sanjeev Bikchandani, MakeMyTrip CEO Rajesh Magow and others to invest in the fund. The Mumbai-based fund is led by Rahul Chandra and Bala Srinivasa, both veterans in the venture capital space. The fund has closed its first round for ₹325 crore and hopes to raise a total of ₹700 crore. Chandra in a <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/arkam-ventures-middle-india-design-rahul-chandra/">LinkedIn post</a> explained that the fund will be focusing on the next 400 million users of India and the companies that cater to that. “Our thesis for this fund is “Middle India by Design”. We believe that the Next 400M market - consumers just below the top of the pyramid making between ₹3 lakh and ₹20 lakh a year in family income - will be the primary driver of a new digital India. Almost seventy percent of wallet share of these consumers is distributed across four sectors - financial services, healthcare, food/grocery and mobility,” he wrote. With these four sectors in mind, the VC firm will look at founders who are developing tech solutions in them. Despite the Covid-19 pandemic, India’s homegrown investment firms are gaining momentum. And that’s what has been advocated by the likes of Infosys co-founder <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/infosys-co-founder-explains-how-the-next-google-facebook-or-amazon-can-be-born-out-of-india/articleshow/76243554.cms">Kris Gopalakrishnan</a> as well. “We have to create Indian VC (venture capital) firms. We have to create Indian funds that are billion dollars or ten billion dollars. The wealth is there, you know, whatever data we have shows that you know, maybe two trillion to three trillion dollars of wealth is there in private hands in India. So some of that has to actually flow into this ecosystem,” Gopalakrishnan said in a chat with Sudhir Sethi of Chiratae Ventures. Chandra too believes that the coronavirus pandemic has “significantly accelerated the digitization momentum”. “While the short-term is likely to be challenging for start-ups with a lot of uncertainty around the business environment, we think it's a great time to start a new business or find ways to stay relevant with an existing one. Tough times are often the crucible from which brilliant ideas and market winners emerge and we don't believe that this crisis will be any different,” he wrote. While at first sight Arkam might seem like a Batman reference, Arkam in Sanskrit actually means limitless, boundaryless, or without constraints. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/infosys-co-founder-explains-how-the-next-google-facebook-or-amazon-can-be-born-out-of-india/articleshow/76243554.cms">Infosys co-founder explains how the next Google, Facebook or Amazon can be born out of India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/iit-delhi-alumni-who-worked-with-the-un-and-indias-health-ministry-is-running-out-of-money-to-create-more-jobs-for-the-needy/articleshow/76244401.cms">IIT Delhi alumni who worked with the UN and India’s Health Ministry is running out of money to create more jobs for the needy</a>

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Binny Bansal come together to back the latest VC firm Arkam ⁠— and it’s not a Batman reference

<ul><li><keyword id="6557529" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="kreditbee" source="Orion">KreditBee</keyword> is a fintech platform which facilitates instant personal loans to professionals. </li><li>Existing investors include <keyword id="648852" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="premji-invest" source="Orion">Premji Invest</keyword>, MO Alternates, TPG-backed <keyword id="622861" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="newquest-capital-partners" source="Orion">NewQuest Capital Partners</keyword>, and <keyword id="11373086" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="mirae-asset-ventures" source="Orion">Mirae Asset Ventures</keyword>. </li><li>The brand aims to cross an AUM of $1 billion over the next 6 to 9 months. </li><li>The company further plans to diversify its product offering by venturing into digitally-enabled secured loans, home loans, and credit lines. </li></ul>KreditBee, one of India’s leading fintech platforms, has secured $80 million as a part of its ongoing Series-D investment round. The brand is currently a Series-C funded entity with a cumulative fundraise of over $200 million. The fintech platform facilitates instant personal loans to professionals, where they can avail loans up to ₹4 lakhs as per their requirements. The current investment saw active participation from existing investors Azim Premji’s Premji Invest, <keyword id="15088227" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="motilal-oswal-alternates" source="Orion">Motilal Oswal Alternates</keyword>, TPG-backed NewQuest Capital Partners, and Mirae Asset Ventures. The round also saw debut participation from <keyword id="6516824" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="mufg-bank" source="Orion">MUFG Bank</keyword>, one of the largest financial institutions across the world. Some of its other marquee investors include <keyword id="6653" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="icici-bank" source="Orion">ICICI Bank</keyword>, Arkam Ventures, and SIDBI’s investment arm IndiaSME Investments. “The investment adds more weight to our vision of encouraging financial independence through a smart digital experience, which is what India stands for today. With the current round, we look forward to expanding our set of solutions to serve our growing consumer base,” <keyword id="3538271" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="madhusudan-e" source="Orion">Madhusudan E</keyword>, Co-Founder &amp; CEO, KreditBee said. The funds will be used to diversify KreditBee’s product portfolio and strengthen its tech stack. The platform aims to cross an AUM of $1 billion over the next 6 to 9 months. KreditBee currently offers multiple types of personal loans, online/offline checkout finance, and digital gold. The company further plans to diversify its product offering by venturing into digitally-enabled secured loans, home loans, and credit lines. “ KreditBee is solving the credit needs of the growing and aspirational, yet underserved middle-income consumer of ‘Bharat’ through an innovative platform,” <keyword id="1318832" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="vinit-mehta" source="Orion">Vinit Mehta</keyword>, director and head of BFSI at MO Alternate Investment Advisors said. The platform currently has 6 million loan customers, out of which over 2 million are active loan customers, the company statement claimed. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/top-10-largest-employers-companies-in-india-in-2022/slidelist/95940138.cms">These companies are the top 10 employers in India as per Hurun list 2022</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/top-10-youtube-videos-of-2022/articleshow/95931879.cms">From Will Smith slapping Chris Rock to a scam call center being pranked, here are the top 10 videos of 2022</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/globalbees-to-cred-and-two-adani-group-companies-companies-which-command-high-valuations-with-low-revenues/articleshow/95929044.cms">The curious case of companies which command high valuations with low revenues</a>

Personal loans fintech platform KreditBee raises $80 million in Series-D investment round

<ul><li>HNIs from tier 2 towns of industrial belts are now placing their bets on new-age companies, say VC and PE fund managers. </li><li>Wealth advisers of Indian HNIs and family offices have played a part in popularising select investment in AIFs. </li><li>Second-generation family members are more clued in to the startup opportunity as they lead the charter to diversify family holdings. </li><li>Small businessmen from rich industrial belts and tier 2 towns with core businesses that generate free cash flows are actively deploying funds in startups via AIFs.</li></ul> The Indian startup story has not just gone global, it’s going deep into the hinterlands too. And it’s the high networth individual (HNIs) investors in tier 2 towns of industrial belts who are driving this rush of investments in new-age companies. A number of <keyword id="34499" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="private-equity" source="Orion">private equity</keyword> (PE) and <keyword id="6357097" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="venture-capital" source="Orion">venture capital</keyword> (VC) firms Business Insider <keyword id="3658" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="india" source="Orion">India</keyword> spoke to said that these HNIs, especially from the second generation, had discovered the value of the alternate investment ecosystem and were steadily deploying funds into these investments. “With continuous exposure, the startup ecosystem has got evangelised among potential investors across India. We are seeing investors coming from cities like Nagpur, Vadodara, Surat, Bhubaneshwar, Cochin, Coimbatore to name a few. The list is long,” says Anil Joshi, managing partner at Unicorn India Ventures, an early stage-focused tech fund. In the last two years, domestic HNIs have been investing more into the PE and VC ecosystem due to the growing popularity of the alternate ecosystem. The initial rush of domestic HNIs was from metros like Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. However, tier 2 cities and towns too have caught on, very fast. Small towns have a lot of depth in terms of investments to be deployed, VCs say. For instance, the rich industrial belts of Ludhiana, Kanpur or Surat have family offices that are keen on alternate investment funds or AIFs. “The core businesses of these family offices are generating free cash flows of a couple of ₹100 crores a year and they are actively deploying that in startups via AIFs,” said Rahul <keyword id="796" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="chandra" source="Orion">Chandra</keyword>, MD of Arkam Ventures, an early-stage tech fund. A vibrant alternate ecosystem Srini Sriniwasan, managing director of Kotak Investment Advisors, said in early August that the many marquee fund managers have been inaccessible to domestic investors as they had either raised only offshore capital or had high minimum ticket requirements. That is no longer the case. “Indian alternate ecosystem has become vibrant with PE/VC fund managers delivering consistent returns and outperformance over public benchmarks,” said Sriniwasan in early August. Wealth advisers of Indian HNIs and family offices too have played a part in popularising select investments in AIF. Moreso, the growth in digitalization has made them ‘buy into’ the tech startup story and many of them have become IPO investors, said Chandra. “The question in their mind is why not participate financially in this growth story. Their public market investments have grown over the last two years and they find it prudent to diversify their capital to AIFs. The second-generation family members are more clued in to the startup opportunity and they are leading the charter to diversify family holdings to AIFs,” adds Chandra. The trend has become even more pronounced in the last two years, as per VCs. Second-generation businessmen Ankur Mittal, partner of Delhi-based VC Physis Capital, said that the youngest members of large family businesses in small towns are leading their families towards these investments. Physis claims to have never gone looking for domestic investors – most of their investors had found them online, filled a form on the website and became investors. Many of these investors have a similar profile – most own multi-million dollar family businesses in small cities. “They are those who can spot an opportunity and realise that something is happening in this asset class and want to take a plunge in it,” he told Business Insider India. Mittal said that one of their investors was an IIM graduate who went back home to run his family businesses – and convinced the family to invest in AIFs. “The idea of investing in AIFs also spreads word of mouth. Once initial investors see consistent returns, they bring in friends and families, as these successful businessmen are opinion leaders of that region,” Mittal said. No funding winter yet Venture capitalists say that the interest of these investors has remained intact in spite of the current economic pain points — high inflation, slowing growth and worries of recession globally that may have a cascading effect on India too. They believe that India offers good opportunities for wealth creation. Since most of these investments are long term, the economic turmoil has had less impact on investment decisions. The natural correction in valuations has not affected early-stage investments as much as growth-stage companies, as per VCs. “Overall both domestic and foreign investors seem confident, just that we are seeing some corrections on valuation, which is fair, considering the nature of economy and cycle of the business,” said Unicorn India Ventures’ Joshi. A lot of VCs are bullish on the Indian startup growth story and say that there has been a steady supply of foreign capital in spite of the talk of funding winter. “The funding winter, so to speak, is not visible so far although the sources (of funding) are certainly fewer. There is a reduction in fundraise size and valuation but the rounds for quality startups will continue to close,” said Chandra. “Domestics investors will continue to supplement this foreign capital flow and diversify their exposure to venture by investing in early as well as growth VC funds,” he added. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/rating-agencies-revise-gdp-growth-estimates-yet-again-most-now-peg-it-below-7/articleshow/93944018.cms">Rating agencies revise GDP growth estimates yet again, most now peg it below 7%</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/health/news/canada-approves-bivalent-moderna-spikevax-booster-that-acts-against-covid-19-and-omicron/articleshow/93943902.cms">Canada approves bivalent Moderna Spikevax booster that acts against Covid-19 and Omicron</a>

Cash-rich family offices of small towns are buying into the India startup story

New Delhi, Jun 16 () Jai Kisan, a Mumbai-based fintech platform, on Tuesday said it has raised Rs 30 crore funding from Arkam Ventures with participation of a fund backed by NABARD. Founded by Arjun Ahluwalia and Adriel Maniego – graduates of Texas A&amp;M University - who quit their jobs in private equity and restructuring firm, respectively, to move to India, Jai Kisan is a fintech platform for rural emerging markets that facilitates a suite of financial products to rural customers. In a statement, the platform said it has "closed a Rs 30 crore Pre-Series A round of funding led by Arkam Ventures (previously known as Unitary Helion) with participation from NABVENTURES Fund I (backed by NABARD)". Jai Kisan is NABVENTURES' first investment. "The fresh round of fundraising saw participation from existing investors including Blume, Prophetic Ventures and Better Capital. The round also saw participation from prominent leaders in finance and agri like an affiliate of The Chatterjee Group (TCG), Rajiv Sahney (New Vernon Capital), Sanjay Mariwala (Omniactive) and others," it said. Over the past 6 months, Jai Kisan has disbursed over Rs 50 crore in loans of top tier credit quality to a diverse set of 5,500-plus borrowers from various income groups across 10 states. Jai Kisan's financial products and robust technology platform is able to onboard a diverse set of borrowers varying from a lady farmer with minimal documentation in a tribal village with no electricity in the Nilgiris to a large grape producer and exporter in Nashik. "Adriel and I started Jai Kisan to facilitate rightly priced credit (and other financial services) to rural borrowers. "It didn't make sense to us that a poor woman borrower in the middle of nowhere is expected to generate over 24 per cent IRR on a small 50K type loan – (and that too from a formal lender!), while in our previous jobs (private equity) we were expected to generate a meagre 12 per cent IRR," said Arjun Ahluwalia, Co-Founder and CEO of Jai Kisan. Today, Jai Kisan provides cheap financing options for equipment, input and invoice financing for rural borrowers accessible at their fingertips or at any of Jai Kisan's partners' tech enabled locations. G R Chintala, Chairman, NABARD, remarked, "We appreciate the efforts of Jai Kisan to emerge as a frontline agri/rural fintech player on the strength of its tech prowess, low cost of operations along with reasonable security levels". ANZ BAL

Rural Fintech startup Jai Kisan raises Rs 30 cr from NABARD-back fund, others

<ul><li><keyword id="6557529" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="KreditBee">KreditBee</keyword>’s holding company Finnov has raised $70 million from TPG-backed NewQuest Capital Partners and Motilal Oswal Private Equity.</li><li>The company’s latest round comes just a month after it had raised $75 million from the likes of Azim Premji’s Premji Invest and South Korean investment firm Mirae Assets Ventures.</li><li>KreditBee claims to have a registered user base of over 25 million.</li></ul>Fintech lending startup KreditBee’s holding company Finnov has raised $70 million from new investors TPG-backed NewQuest Capital Partners and Motilal Oswal Private Equity. The company’s latest round comes just a month after it had raised $75 million from the likes of Azim Premji’s Premji Invest and South Korean investment firm Mirae Assets Ventures, with participation from Alpine Capital and Arkam Ventures. KreditBee’s funding comes when fintech continues to be a hot sector in India, with lending startups having got a bigger push during COVID-19. During the pandemic, as people lost their jobs, or merchants looked to save their businesses, they <a href="https://www.thehindubusinessline.com/money-and-banking/digital-lending-apps-continue-to-see-robust-demand/article34037180.ece">turned </a>to a lot more lending apps for financial support. In fact, according to a Boston Consulting Group and Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) report, the alternative lending sector is going to see increased investments – from $2.5 billion between 2016-2020 to $5.6 billion between 2021-2025. KreditBee claims to have a registered user base of over 25 million. The three-year old company now hopes to use the funds to ‘expand the lending portfolio to different products, and develop an offline-online lending capability to bridge the consumer financing needs of Bharat (the term coined for India’s next millions of internet users from rural India)’. “A complex demography like India requires simple, effective and impactful lending solutions, that comes with a deeper understanding of the consumer financing needs of the ecosystem. We are happy to onboard investment partners with us who share the same vision as we do as to how personal finance should graduate from a luxurious aspiration to a trivial commodity, available at the click of a button”, added Madhusudan E, co-founder and chief executive of KreditBee’s holding group entity. Interestingly, KreditBee joins the list of startups, which are giving exits to their Chinese investors. KreditBee’s investor the Chinese investment firm Shunwei Capital had <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/funding/kreditbee-gets-70-million-more-in-series-c-funding-round/articleshow/81620486.cms?from=mdr">reportedly </a>exited the firm last month. Shunwei had also recently exited another investment in India – Koo, the microblogging platform. “The conclusion of this round has led to an exit of most of the early-stage investors,” said KreditBee in a statement. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/barbeque-nation-ipo-to-raise-180-crore-by-selling-54-5-lakh-shares/articleshow/81626158.cms">With an IPO on its plate, Barbeque Nation hopes to clear off some of its debt and double down on not just dining but its new delivery business</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/zerodha-founder-nikhil-kamath-flipkart-ceo-kalyan-krishnamurthy-and-others-buyout-chinese-investor-shunwei-capital-stake-in-koo-app/articleshow/81548852.cms">A flurry of Indian A-list entrepreneurs buyout Chinese investor Shunwei Capital’s stake in Koo – the microblogging site that’s taking on Twitter</a>

Lending platform KreditBee raises $70 million in its series C round, a month after it got $75 million

<ul><li><keyword id="6354742" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Flipkart">Flipkart</keyword> CEO <keyword id="6379357" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="kalyan-krishnamurthy">Kalyan Krishnamurthy</keyword> in a recent interview has said that while grocery is a value-proposition for them, the e-commerce giant’s priority continues to be the marketplace.</li><li>With the coronavirus pandemic, several companies have pivoted or diversified into new ventures, or even accelerated their diversification plans to meet the demand.</li><li>Walmart-owned Flipkart had applied for a license to run Flipkart FarmerMart – a food retail entity that would sell agricultural produce of Indian farmers online.</li></ul>Walmart-owned Flipkart has been trying to mark its foray into grocery but it had recently been turned down by the Indian government. And now, Flipkart CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy has said that while grocery is a value-proposition for them, the e-commerce giant is not going to forget its priority or change its long term strategy due to the coronavirus pandemic. “We are not in that opportunistic game of doubling down on anything. As for grocery, if we believe there is a strong value proposition, we will continue expanding our footprint but in a very sustainable way. We will not change our long-term growth strategy or category mix focus after the Covid-19 outbreak,” Krishamurthy told <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/our-focus-remains-on-pure-play-ecommerce-flipkarts-kalyan-krishnamurthy/articleshow/76252974.cms">Economic Times</a> in an interview. Krishnamurthy also added that grocery is just 0.1% of Flipkart’s marketplace. With the coronavirus pandemic, several companies have pivoted or diversified into new ventures, or even accelerated their diversification plans to meet the demand. Amazon has been running a pilot for its food delivery vertical in Bengaluru. <keyword id="54613" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="makemytrip">MakeMyTrip</keyword> too has entered food delivery with 5-star hotels, while the likes of Paytm have launched a contactless dining feature for restaurants in the post covid world. Walmart-owned Flipkart too had applied for a license to run Flipkart FarmerMart – a food retail entity that would sell agricultural produce of Indian farmers online. However, the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) has rejected the application saying that the Flipkart FarmerMart would flout the regulatory guidelines. According to the government, any e-commerce platform with foreign direct investment can simply be the platform for the third party sellers to reach out to buyers, but it cannot sell inventory of its own. <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/govt-rejects-flipkarts-plan-to-enter-food-retail/articleshow/76126956.cms">TOI r</a>eported that the Flipkart FarmerMart’s memorandum of association would not allow it to enter food retail. Flipkart is now reapplying for the license. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/vijay-shekhar-sharma-binny-bansal-come-together-to-back-the-latest-vc-firm-arkam-and-its-not-a-batman-reference/articleshow/76255655.cms">Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Binny Bansal come together to back the latest VC firm Arkam ⁠— and it’s not a Batman reference</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/infosys-co-founder-explains-how-the-next-google-facebook-or-amazon-can-be-born-out-of-india/articleshow/76243554.cms">Infosys co-founder explains how the next Google, Facebook or Amazon can be born out of India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/iit-delhi-alumni-who-worked-with-the-un-and-indias-health-ministry-is-running-out-of-money-to-create-more-jobs-for-the-needy/articleshow/76244401.cms">IIT Delhi alumni who worked with the UN and India’s Health Ministry is running out of money to create more jobs for the needy</a>

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BharatAgri raises ₹35 crore in Series A funding led by Arkam Ventures

BI India Bureau

Tapping early-stage tech companies – Arkam Ventures announces launch of $180 million fund

Anagh Pal

Lending startup KreditBee gets ₹545 crore from Premji invest, Mirae Asset and others

IANS

Vijay Shekhar Sharma, Binny Bansal come together to back the latest VC firm Arkam ⁠— and it’s not a Batman reference

Sanchita Dash

Personal loans fintech platform KreditBee raises $80 million in Series-D investment round

Eetika Kapoor

Cash-rich family offices of small towns are buying into the India startup story

Katya Naidu

Rural Fintech startup Jai Kisan raises Rs 30 cr from NABARD-back fund, others

PTI

Lending platform KreditBee raises $70 million in its series C round, a month after it got $75 million

Sanchita Dash

Flipkart is putting the money where its mouth is⁠— and it’s not food and groceries yet

Sanchita Dash

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