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<ul><li><keyword id="30126" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amit-Jain">Amit Jain</keyword> has joined the VC firm as a Managing Director.</li><li>Jain will be based out of Singapore. </li><li>He had been appointed as <keyword id="2502101" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Uber-India">Uber India</keyword> head in 2015. In 2018 he went on to head the APAC business.</li></ul>Sequoia Capital India has brought former Uber India head on Amit Jain on board, as its managing director. Jain will be based out of Singapore. “His addition to the team underscores our deep commitment to helping founders realise their dreams of building very large and enduring companies, many of whom will become key pillars of this region’s growth, prosperity and innovation,” said the company in a statement. Jain had quit as Uber’s Asia Pacific head in April. Jain was appointed as Uber India head in 2015, and went on to head its APAC business in 2018. Before Uber, Jain was the President at Rent.com, a housing classifieds site in Los Angeles. He had also worked at TPG Capital and McKinsey. <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword> has been on a <keyword id="6357342" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Hiring">hiring</keyword> spree in 2019, adding many star candidates to its list. In April 2019, Sequoia hired former Google India head Rajan Anandan. Anandan, the VP for Google South East Asia and India, resigned from the Internet giant to join the VC firm Sequoia Capital’s India and SEA wing. Anandan is also leading Sequoia’s accelerator programme, Surge.

Sequoia India hires former Uber Asia Pacific head Amit Jain

<ul><li><keyword id="249393" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rajan-Anandan">Rajan Anandan</keyword>, VP for Google South East Asia and India, has called it quits at the company. </li><li>While he will stay on at Google until the end of April, he will then be joining <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword>, a top VC firm. </li><li>Vikas Agnihotri, Country Director, Sales will be replacing him as the interim MD at <keyword id="45395" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Google-India">Google India</keyword>. </li></ul>Rajan Anandan, the VP for Google South East Asia and India, has resigned from the Internet giant to join the VC firm Sequoia Capital’s India and SEA wing. Anandan joins Sequoia as managing director and will be part of its leadership team. He will also lead Sequoia’s accelerator program Surge. Surge has on offer $1.5 million of seed capital along with “company-building workshops, global immersion trips and support from a community of exceptional founders”, according to an official blog from the company. “Rajan’s deep understanding of technology, significant operating expertise and a track record of growing tech businesses across the region will help Surge founders scale and build the transformational businesses of tomorrow,” said Shailendra J Singh, managing director at Sequoia, in a post on LinkedIn. While Anandan will stay on at Google until the end of April, the company has appointed Vikas Agnihotri, Country Director, Sales as the interim MD. Anandan has often been credited for having catapulted Google’s growth in India, over his tenure of eight years in the company. However, his entry into investments is not new. Anandan has been an active angel investor and also a member of the Indian Angel Network. Seen at many <keyword id="138263" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="startup">startup</keyword> events in the National Capital, Anandan has invested in startups like Innov8, Lucideus, Buttercups etc. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/google-will-groom-these-10-indian-startups-that-use-ai-and-machine-learning/articleshow/68384856.cms">Google will groom these 10 Indian startups that use AI and machine learning</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/exclusive-rajan-anandan-vp-google-india-says-that-it-is-the-beginning-of-the-indian-start-up-boom/articleshow/58144238.cms">Exclusive: Rajan Anandan, VP, Google India says that it is the Beginning of the Start-up Boom in India</a>

Google India head Rajan Anandan quits to join VC firm Sequoia

<keyword id="744121" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="minimalist">Minimalist</keyword>, a new-age homegrown <keyword id="2782303" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="skincare-brand">skincare brand</keyword>, has raised Series A funding of Rs <keyword id="73571" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="110-crore">110 crore</keyword> through multiple international investors in just nine months of its inception. The round was led by <keyword id="136147" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-Capital-India">Sequoia Capital India</keyword>, with participation from <keyword id="2919607" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Unilever-Ventures">Unilever Ventures</keyword>. The brand plans to utilise the funds to enhance its infrastructure and R&amp;D capabilities, launch in global markets, as well as double down on its content creation efforts by sharing well-researched knowledge about skincare with its consumers. Launched in 2020 by Mohit and Rahul Yadav, Minimalist, which is a mission-driven brand committed to bringing high-levels of efficacy and transparency to the personal care segment, is rapidly gaining popularity due to its values and ethos. So far, they have served over one million customers and is the fastest growing skincare brand in India. Their products are popular among both women and men looking for solutions to acne, pigmentation, excess sebum, dull skin. Speaking about the fundraise, Mohit Yadav, Co-founder - Minimalist, said, "Consumers today are looking beyond marketing claims and are seeking efficacy based skincare products. Our growth so far proves that a radical change in skincare industry is underway. Together with our customers, we are creating 'Skincare 2.0' by offering proven solutions driven by scientific innovations." Having a portfolio of diverse skincare and hair care products, the brand retails through its own website, along with e-commerce giants like Amazon, Nykaa, Flipkart, Myntra, and numerous other marketplaces. Minimalist currently offers 20 products ranging from serums, toners, face acids and moisturizers that are well researched, backed by proven science, safe, effective, mindfully created, and suited for all skin types. "Minimalist's products take an efficacy-first approach using transparency and science as underpinnings to improving personal care outcomes. This has resulted in a strong following and business momentum. Having seen the power of Mohit and Rahul's execution over many years, <keyword id="122716" type="CITY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-Capital">Sequoia Capital</keyword> India is thrilled to lead the Series A financing in the company," said Shailesh Lakhani, Managing Director, <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword>. "Minimalist is trailblazing science-backed clean beauty formulations in India, a trend that has gained massive consumer acceptance worldwide and with growing consumer traction in India. We look forward to working with the founders and management team along with our fellow investors in supporting the brand's ambitions over the coming years," said Pawan Chaturvedi, Partner at Unilever Ventures. Sequoia Capital India operates in India and Southeast Asia, where they actively partner with founders across sectors from idea to IPO. Unilever Ventures is the venture capital arm of British multinational consumer goods company <keyword id="261686" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Unilever-plc">Unilever PLC</keyword> that invests in fast growing companies across consumer and enterprise technology. SEE ALSO <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/byjus-last-two-acquisitions-and-a-deal-with-disney-reveal-its-american-dream/articleshow/84783749.cms">Byju's last two acquisitions and a deal with Disney reveal its American dream ⁠— one that is anchored in India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/personal-finance/news/six-red-flags-for-investors-to-avoid-becoming-a-victim-of-misselling-by-agents-or-financial-advisors/slidelist/84782913.cms">Six red flags for investors to avoid becoming a victim of misselling by agents or financial advisors</a>

Skincare brand Minimalist raises ₹110 crore in Series A funding led by Sequoia Capital India

New Delhi, Mar 5 () Tech firm Salesken on Thursday said it has raised USD 8 million in series A funding led by Sequoia India. "The funding round was led by Sequoia India and also featured a secondary with investors such as Unitus Ventures and Michael and Susan Dell Foundation making partial exit," a statement said. The transaction was facilitated by Masterkey Holdings, it added. The funds will be used for further development of Salesken's artificial intelligence-based conversation intelligence platform (Salesken.ai) and for expansion across the Asia Pacific and North America markets, a statement said. Salesken helps companies with real-time intelligence during their sales conversations to help them win more deals. Sales teams using Salesken.ai receive intelligence on various aspects of the sales pitch, from lead qualification to navigating pricing discussions. They can also gauge the sentiments of their customers during the conversation.** * *Callido Learning raises seed funding from Education Catalyst Fund*Edu-tech firm Callido Learning on Thursday said it has raised seed funding from Education Catalyst Fund (ECF). While the amount of funding raised was not disclosed, the company said the proceeds will be used to strengthen the technology underpinning its products, fuel growth for its recently launched skills assessment and launch its first retail offering. In India, Callido counts schools such as The Shri Ram School, Shiv Nadar Schools, Cathedral &amp; John Connon School, and The Dhirubhai Ambani International School amongst its clients. Internationally, Callido works with schools in 18 countries."We intend to use the funds for product upgrades and to scale our presence in India and overseas. We also plan to foray into the B2C segment," Sriram Subramanian, CEO at Callido Learning, said. ****TCS HOBS helps Airtel streamline product portfolio*IT services major Tata Consultancy Services on Thursday said it has implemented its HOBS Product Portfolio Management (PPM) solution for Airtel to help the telecom giant to create personalised offers and make them available in the market instantly."Airtel partnered with TCS to implement a single enterprise-wide product catalog for all marketing and sales channels in India. TCS HOBS PPM has streamlined the company's product lifecycle processes, rationalizing its large product portfolio by 80 per cent," a statement said.It empowers Airtel's business teams to manage the product portfolio on their own, and significantly automates new product rollouts across business and IT operations, eliminating inefficiencies and reducing time to market by 90 per cent, it added. SR SR MRMR

Salesken raises $8 mn led by Sequoia India

<ul class="summary-list"><li>VC firm <keyword id="13647765" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sequoia-capital-india" source="Orion">Sequoia Capital India</keyword> has spoken out about fraud allegations at multiple <keyword id="6362513" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="startups" source="Orion">startups</keyword> it's backed.</li><li>The firm said it was difficult to conduct due diligence on early-stage businesses.</li></ul><keyword id="11904329" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sequoia-capital" source="Orion">Sequoia Capital</keyword> India, a major investor in Southeast Asian startups, has said due diligence on early-stage startups is tough as four of its portfolio companies face fraud or misconduct allegations.<a href="https://india.sequoiacap.com/build/corporate-governance-the-cornerstone-of-an-enduring-company/">In a blogpost not attributed to a particular author</a>, the firm said: "Recently some portfolio founders have been under investigation for potential fraudulent practices or poor governance. These allegations are deeply disturbing."The post added: "It is easy to think of this issue as ascribed to poor due diligence. But let's remember that when investments are made at seed or early stage there is hardly a business to diligence. Even later stage investors can face negative surprises, post investment, if there is willful fraud and intent."<keyword id="12116150" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="sequoia" source="Orion">Sequoia</keyword> didn't name check any firms, but one of these negative surprises has been <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/zilingo-ceo-suspended-accounting-probe-singapore-startup-report-2022-4">Zilingo</a>, a Singapore-based fashion e-commerce startup first backed by Sequoia in 2015 and estimated to be worth $970 million. <keyword id="13616941" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="zilingo" source="Orion">Zilingo</keyword> earlier this month suspended its cofounder and CEO Ankiti Bose amid a financial probe into its accounting practices. A lawyer acting for Bose called her suspension "unfair" in <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-14/sequoia-s-singh-leaves-zilingo-board-amid-accounting-probe">a statement to Bloomberg</a>.Sequoia and another backer, Temasek, raised their concerns with Zilingo's board. Sequoia's Shailendra Singh subsequently resigned as director of Zilingo's board, Bloomberg reported.Three other Sequoia-backed startups are also under scrutiny.In mid-March, Indian news media reported that EY India was investigating social e-commerce platform <a href="https://inc42.com/buzz/trells-founders-under-scrutiny-for-financial-irregularities/">Trell</a> for alleged financial irregularities. The same month, <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/tech/startups/tax-officials-raid-zetwerks-offices-founders-homes-suspecting-tax-evasion/articleshow/90293975.cms?from=mdr">Zetwerk Manufacturing</a> was reportedly raided by Indian tax officials over alleged tax evasion concerns. Also in March, financial platform <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/ashneer-grover-loses-singapore-arbitration-bharatpe-probe-to-continue/articleshow/89887218.cms">BharatPe's</a> cofounder Ashneer Grover was <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2022/03/01/bharatpe-founder-ashneer-grover-siphoned-off-money-fintech-startup-says/">accused of misappropriating funds</a> by the firm and quit as CEO. Sequoia in its post called for better "guardrails" for the startup ecosystem, such as agreeing new rules around corporate governance, and said startup "boards can only work with the information shared with them" to uncover wrongdoing.Sequoia's post highlights the risks of investing in early-stage startups, where <keyword id="11897927" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="venture-capital" source="Orion">venture capital</keyword> firms plow cash into unproven companies, often trusting in a founder's vision more than the solidity of their business model. The firm wrote that a startup's board "is not responsible to investigate on an ongoing basis" for potential bad behavior unless it's explicitly flagged up.But some regional investors shot back at suggestions that the wider ecosystem was at fault."Sequoia India, caught with their pants down with 4 portfolio companies. Decides to blames the 'eco-system,'" wrote Sam Gibb, managing partner of Singapore-based fintech investor Resolution Ventures, <a href="https://twitter.com/samngibb/status/1515837214499827714">on Twitter</a>. He said that bigger investors encourage a "growth-at-all-costs" mentality at startups, leading founders to step "over gray lines" to hit metrics."The interests of career VCs (where a bulk of remuneration is fixed) diverge from founders as status is more important to them than building lasting economic value," he wrote.Sequoia could not be reached over the phone for further comment.

Big-name investor Sequoia says startup due diligence is hard as 4 of its Asian portfolio companies face allegations of fraud or misconduct

<ul><li>The Series C round was led by investors like <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword>, <keyword id="3869410" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="hillhouse">Hillhouse</keyword>, Capital G, Axis Bank etc. </li><li>The new round of funding takes CarDekho valuation to $500 million. </li><li>The company will focus on expanding its used car business.</li></ul>The slew of funding for Indian startups continues in 2019 with Jaipur-based CarDekho raising $110 million from marquee investors like Sequoia India, Hillhouse, CapitalG (the growth investment arm of Alphabet) and Axis Bank. The new round of funding takes CarDekho valuation to $500 million. With funds in the bank now, <keyword id="30126" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Amit-Jain">Amit Jain</keyword>, CEO and co-founder, said in a <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/cardekho-raises-110-million-to-expand-used-car-business/articleshow/67365016.cms">press statement </a>that they will be using the funds to expand their used car business and infuse money into their insurance and finance verticals. “These segments have huge potential to scale up and we are completely focused on getting them to a massive scale,” he said. CarDekho, launched in 2008, offers an e-commerce portal for new and used cars, while also offering services to compare prices between cars, view/write reviews, insurance etc. It claims to work directly with <a href="https://www.livemint.com/Companies/Py7r9DrZKgqleEshHohkAN/CarDekho-raises-110-million-in-Series-C-from-Axis-Bank-inv.html">8 automakers in India </a>along with 5,000 dealer partnerships across the country. It was<a href="https://techcircle.vccircle.com/2018/10/09/cardekho-parent-girnar-software-s-fy18-revenue-jumps-40-loss-nearly-halves"> reported in October 2018</a>, that the GirnarSoft Pvt Ltd owned auto e-commerce portal had earlier recorded a 40 percent growth in revenue for the financial year closing on March 2018, while also reducing losses. 2018 looked like a busy year of investments for the company with GirnarSoft raising $3.6 million in debt funding from Trifecta and CarDekho scooping up $2.5 million in a Series B round led by Sequoia Capital. Used car business in India The used car market in India has seen strong growth over the years. A report published by Mordor Intelligence states that the Indian used car market is slated to reach a market size of $75 billion by 2023, while also recording a CAGR of 15.2% India has seen a surge in the number of startups operating in the area with the likes of CarDekho, Droom, CarWaale, Cars24 etc., many of which have raised funding in 2018, reflecting an increased interest from investors. Interestingly, Cardekho’s investor Sequoia Capital also backed Cars24 in July 2018, when the latter raised $49.7 million. Meanwhile, Sandeep Aggarwal-led Droom raised a <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/small-biz/startups/newsbuzz/droom-raises-30-million-funding-to-buy-back-esops-worth-rs-50-crore/articleshow/66067615.cms">series E round of funding </a>of $30 million led by the Japanese family office of Joe Hirao. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/online-marketplace-olx-plans-to-open-150-offline-stores-for-buying-and-selling-of-used-cars-across-india/articleshow/66830026.cms">Online marketplace OLX plans to open 150 ‘offline’ stores for buying and selling of used cars across India</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/for-indian-startups-2018-has-been-a-year-of-bouncing-back-as-venture-capital-funding-doubles/articleshow/67286540.cms">For Indian startups, 2018 has been a year of bouncing back as venture capital funding doubles</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/the-indian-government-has-reportedly-invested-just-19-of-its-fund-dedicated-to-boosting-startups/articleshow/67323307.cms">The Indian government has reportedly invested just 19% of its fund dedicated to boosting startups</a>

In India, used car businesses see renewed interest from investors with CarDekho raising $110 million

Bengaluru-based neo-banking startup <keyword id="8555470" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="EpiFi">Epifi</keyword> on Monday said it has raised USD 13.2 million (around Rs 93.4 crore) in a seed funding round led by <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword> and <keyword id="2126501" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ribbit-Capital">Ribbit Capital</keyword>. The company said it will utilise the funds to build its core technology platform, drive sales as well as marketing initiatives and expand its technology team. The seed funding round that was led by Sequoia India and Ribbit Capital also saw participation from Hillhouse Capital and angel investors, including David Velez, the founder of Nubank, and Kunal Shah, Founder and CEO, CRED, the statement said.
 Seed money, sometimes known as seed funding or seed capital, is a form of securities offering in which an investor invests capital in a startup company in exchange for an equity stake or convertible note stake in the company.
 Founded in May last year by Google Pay top executives Sujith Narayanan and Sumit Gwalani, Epifi is a fintech startup that provides digital banking solutions.
 "Millennials are a digital-first generation who are reshaping the world's economy, pushing companies to re-examine the way they do business.... Through epiFi, our mission is to provide digital natives a new-age platform that uses customer insights and deep tech to simplify their banking journey and help them take a big step towards achieving financial freedom," Epifi Co-foundersaid Sujith Narayanan said. SID DRR

Neo-banking startup Epifi raises $13.2 mn from Sequoia India, Ribbit Capital

<ul><li><keyword id="1670338" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ritesh-Agarwal">Ritesh Agarwal</keyword> through his Cayman-registered company RA Hospitality Holdings, has invested $2 billion into <keyword id="2808667" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="OYO">OYO</keyword>. </li><li>OYO’s early investors <keyword id="455799" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Lightspeed-Venture-Partners">Lightspeed Venture Partners</keyword>, and <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword> are selling part of their stake in the company to increase Agarwal’s stake. </li><li>The company also claims that its revenue grew 4.4 times in June 2019 as compared to June 2018.</li></ul>In a first for the Indian startup community, OYO founder Ritesh Agarwal invested $2 billion into his own company. Agarwal made the investment through a Cayman-registered company, RA Hospitality Holdings. OYO’s early investors Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Sequoia India are selling a part of their stake in the company back to him. “It is a very exciting time for OYO right now as we make great living spaces come alive across all corners of the world from Texas to Tokyo. The deal remains subject to shareholder and regulatory approvals,” said Ritesh Agarwal, Founder &amp; CEO (Group), OYO Hotels &amp; Homes. Agarwal reportedly wants to raise his stake in the firm to over 30%. Currently, Agarwal holds 9.43% in the hospitality startup, while SoftBank, the Japanese investment firm, controls 45.69% of the company. Early investor Lightspeed has 13.4% stake, while Sequoia Capital has 10.24%. According to information sourced by paper.vc, Article 21.6 of Oyo’s Articles of Association prohibit Softbank from directly or indirectly, acquiring more than 49.99% of the fully diluted share capital of the company, without the consent of Aggarwal, Greenoaks, Lightspeed and Sequoia Capital. SoftBank has been an investor in OYO for a long time now. It was Softbank's investment that led OYO into the Indian unicorn club with a $5 billion valuation in September 2018, a huge jump from the $900 million valuation it had until then. The company also claims that its revenues grew 4.4 times in June 2019 as compared to June 2018). It has a million rooms, out of which over 200,000 are in India. OYO now has 20,000 buildings with its signature red and white logo branding on it. The Indian hospitality unicorn has been spreading its business far and wide. It recently became China’s largest hotel chain. OYO said that it will invest $300 million to expand its footprint in the United States – into cities like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. It already has 50 hotels across 15 states in the US. It also launched services in Vietnam.

OYO’s Ritesh Agarwal sets a new benchmark – invests $2 billion into his own company to increase his stake

<a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Sequoia+Capital+India+">Sequoia Capital India</a> is ready for an aggressive pace of investments in the country. The <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=v">Silicon Valley</a>-headquartered <keyword id="6357097" type="COMPANY" weightage="80" keywordseo="venture-capital">venture capital</keyword> firm is planning to raise about $800 million (about Rs 5,000 crore) for a new fund. 
 
The $800-million fund will be the largest <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Venture+Capital+">Venture Capital</a> fund for India, and one of the biggest in the venture and growth capital category in recent years. 
 According to two people familiar with the development, the fund raising process is expected to begin in 6-12 months and is likely to be closed in quick time, "as is the norm with <keyword id="270604" type="ENTERTAINMENT" weightage="100" keywordseo="Sequoia">Sequoia</keyword>". 
 
Sources who knew about Sequoia's plans for a new fund said the venture capital firm may begin approaching limited partners, industry parlance for investors in these funds, as early as October. 
 
The VC firm has nearly $2 billion under management and the new fund will make Sequoia, already a highly influential investor, one of the largest private equity and venture capital managers as well. 
 
One person familiar with the plan said: "One idea behind such a large fund could be to counter the influence of Tiger Global, which will be good for the ecosystem." 
 
Let’s know what experts has to say about Sequoia’s aggressive plans: 
 
1. The VC firm has the ability to invest: Its move to raise such a large fund in quick succession will signal to entrepreneurs the firm's ability to invest across early and late-stage deals, said industry experts. In the past year, several hedge funds have entered India and firms like <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/searchresult.cms?query=Tiger+Global+Management+">Tiger Global Management</a> have been aggressively investing in early-stage deals. 
Sequoia Capital has been aggressively backing mid to late stage startups after it unveiled a $530-million fourth India-focussed fund in May 2014, nearly six years after it raised its previous corpus of $725 million in August 2008. Sequoia topped up its fourth India fund with another $210 million earlier this year. "They don't have fund cycles like normal VCs," said a Bengalurubased venture capital investor, adding that the typical cycle between successive funds is 3-4 years. 
 2. Sequoia has participated in at least 80 deals: It has participated in at least 80 deals worth over $1.7 billion since the beginning of 2014, according to data from VCCEdge. It participated in the $100-million round raised by budget stay startup <keyword id="2550719" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="80" keywordseo="OYO-Rooms">OYO Rooms</keyword>, the $90-million round of healthcare app Practo, and the $80-million round of digital payments firm <keyword id="6377963" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="100" keywordseo="Freecharge">FreeCharge</keyword> (which has since been acquired by <a href="http://www.businessinsider.in/Sounds-cool-Smart-Cities-to-also-become-the-safest-in-the-entire-country/articleshow/48867219.cms">Snapdeal</a>). "Sequoia has been able to balance its investments in newage businesses and older businesses in areas like life sciences (and) consumer quite well. Also, they have been one of the most prolific investors in terms of ability to get an exit," said <keyword id="225165" type="PERSON" weightage="80" keywordseo="Sanjeev-Krishan">Sanjeev Krishan</keyword>, transaction services and private equity leader at PwC India. 
 Since last year, the VC firm has closed more than half-a-dozen investments in the life sciences space, including in Koye Pharmaceuticals, Curatio Healthcare, La Renon, MedGenome Labs, Akumentis Healthcare and Innovcare Lifesciences. Sequoia has also been actively investing in <keyword id="53564" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Southeast-Asia">Southeast Asia</keyword> from its India fund, where it has closed nearly a dozen funding deals, including in Tokopedia, mobile marketplace Carousell and analytics platform Appier. 
 
(Image: Indiatimes)

Know how Sequoia is going to become the largest India-focussed Venture Capital fund

New Delhi, Jan 8 () Personal care brand Mamaearth on Wednesday said it has raised Rs 130 crore in funding led by Sequoia India.
 The funding also saw participation from existing investors, Fireside Ventures, Stellaris Venture Partners and Sharp Ventures.
Founded in 2016 by husband-wife duo Varun and Ghazal Alagh, MamaEarth offers skin and hair care, and baby care products. 
The company plans to use the freshly acquired funds over the next three years to continue its growth, building it into a Rs 500 crore brand by acquiring five million new consumers, a statement said. 
The funds will also be used to launch more brands under the Honasa umbrella- all of which will be internet-first and focused on the needs of millennial consumers, it added. 
 Honasa is the parent company of personal care brand Mamaearth.
The company plans to utilise the funds to hire talent as the organization scales rapidly. It also plans to expand into key markets in Southeast Asia.
"Our vision is to create the FMCG conglomerate of the future by building brands that connect strongly with millennials and Gen Z customers using the combined power of digital marketing and e-commerce at large scale," Mamaearth founder and CEO Varun Alagh said in a statement.
Mamaearth, with a Rs 100 crore run-rate, has over 80 products in its portfolio with more than 1.5 million consumers in over 500 cities across India.
"Out of India's over USD 15 billion personal care market, online channels contribute to only 3-5 per cent. With 15-20 per cent of Indian shoppers influenced digitally and expected to double in next 7-8 years, digital first brands have the potential to redefine the architecture of tomorrow's FMCG companies," Sequoia Capital India LLP Principal Ishaan Mittal said. SR RUJ
RUJ

Mamaearth raises Rs 130 cr in funding led by Sequoia India

<ul><li>In an interview with Business Insider, co-founder of <keyword id="7087972" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="mobile-premier-league">Mobile Premier League</keyword> Sai Srinivas Kiran G. talks about how they raked up 20 million users in just 7 months. </li><li>The platform has raised a series A funding from <keyword id="563136" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sequoia-India">Sequoia India</keyword>, Times Internet, and GoVentures, along with participation from existing investors. </li><li><keyword id="6354486" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="virat-kohli">Virat Kohli</keyword> is the brand ambassador of the platform.</li></ul>Mobile Premier League, the <keyword id="3351303" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Gaming-startup">gaming startup</keyword>, has raised a series A funding of $35.5 million led by Sequoia India, Times Internet, and GoVentures. And what’s more, the just 7-month old startup also has Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador. In August 2017, Sai Srinivas Kiran G. and Shubham Malhotra started the gaming platform when they realised three things they call the “holy trinity of the internet” – the price of data today is almost zero, the price of a device is extremely cheap and the third but the biggest factor, people now have an accessible and very convenient method for payments. “That’s when we thought why can’t we build a platform where people come together, pick a game of their choice and compete in tournaments across the country and hopefully one day, across the world. That’s how the Mobile Premier League came about,” Sai told Business Insider. MPL is a horizontal mobile eSports platform where every day about 25-30 online gaming tournaments are held. Every day for some of their tournaments, 150,000 to 300,000 are competing to win, said Sai. While MPL doesn’t develop the games themselves, it works with third-party developers and then publishes the game on the platform. “The platform today is not mature enough to be open for all developers, but the eventual goal is to make it a platform where any developer can create and then publish a game for all users,” said Sai. However, it also has a large competitor in the fantasy gaming space – Dream11, the gaming unicorn which already has MS Dhoni as its ambassador. Dream11 has over 50 million users and aims to have 100 million by the end of the<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/dream11-is-eyeing-the-unicorn-tag-riding-on-ipl-and-cricket-world-cup-in-2019/articleshow/68458528.cms"> year.</a> And Sai, too, rightfully credits Dream11 to have built the fantasy gaming industry in India. But, the horizontal Indian online gaming industry today has over 200 million users and the numbers are expected to grow to 50 million by 2022. MPL too hopes to have a piece of that cake. “In just 7 months, we have had great traction as we already have about 25 million users,” he said. Helping them in their quest for growth, is Virat Kohli. Kohli’s appointment as a brand ambassador was strategic – to help introduce the brand to the millions of people who know and follow the cricketer. While Kohli too saw potential in the product to sign it up, Sai said “there was a little bit of luck mixed into the whole thing.” When it comes to funding, Sai and Malhotra are actually one of Sequoia’s favourites. Their previous startup was Creo, which built the streaming media dongles called Teewee, was also funded by Sequoia. Creo was acquired by Hike last year. Their current funding will help them grow faster by hiring the right talent to build out their product infrastructure and build not just an India centric product but a global one. They are currently making revenue from paid tournaments, sponsored tournaments, and advertising. However, Sai says that being so new in the gamef, their focus remains on user growth. See Also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/mobile-premier-league-signs-virat-kohli-as-brand-ambassador/articleshow/68266803.cms">It’s Virat Kohli Vs MS Dhoni in the Indian e-gaming space</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/dream11-enters-the-unicorn-club-brings-on-board-steadview-capital/articleshow/68788418.cms">Dream11 becomes India’s first gaming unicorn</a>

This 7-month old startup has $35.5 million funding from Sequoia and Virat Kohli as its brand ambassador

New Delhi, Dec 30 () Start-up technology-enabled car service provider GoMechanic on Monday said it has raised Rs 105 crore in Series B funding in a round led by Chiratae Ventures and Sequoia Capital.
 Orios Venture Partners was the other investor which participated in the 3rd round of institutional funding, GoMechanic said in a statement.
 The investment will be used to support expansion into 10 more cities by the end of 2020 in its EV thrust, brand promotion and in streamlining spare parts procurement, it added.
 Commenting on the fund raised, GoMechanic Co-Founder Kushal Karwa said, "The money raised will allow us to continue our aggressive geographical expansion besides investment in innovation to keep us ahead of the curve."
 GoMechanic Co-Founder Amit Bhasin said the current fundraise will reinvigorate the company's thrust in providing scalable technology first solutions for the USD 11 billion unorganised automotive repairs and maintenance market.
 Chiratae Ventures Executive-Director Ranjith Menon said, "India is among the largest car manufacturers in the world where bulk of the cars on the road are out of warranty. We are excited to work with the GoMechanic team addressing this huge gap in a technology first manner."
 Commenting on the company's investment in GoMechanic, Sequoia Capital India LLP Vice President Abhishek Mohan said, "In the 12 months since Sequoia India led the Series A, the company has scaled many times on the back of its asset light network of workshops and most importantly built true customer love. Given the massive market potential of USD 5 billion plus, we are excited to see what comes next."
 Earlier this year, GoMechanic had raised Rs 35 crore in a series-A round led by Sequoia Capital and Orios Venture Partners. In 2017, it had raised close to Rs 7 crore from Orios Venture Partners and Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal.
 In 2016 the company has raised Rs 2 crore in angel funding from Dhianu Das. GoMechanic offers a platform for multi-brand car service centres. RKL SHW
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