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<ul><li>This latest round brings <keyword id="20120563" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pocket-fm" source="keywords">Pocket FM</keyword>’s total funding to date to $196.5 million.</li><li>The new funding will aid its plans to expand into <keyword id="19897269" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="europe" source="keywords">Europe</keyword> and <keyword id="20923367" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="latam" source="keywords">LatAm</keyword> markets in 2024.</li><li>Pocket FM, founded in 2018, has a repository of over 100,000 hours of content. </li></ul>Audio entertainment platform Pocket FM announced on Wednesday that it has raised $103 million in Series D funding — making it one of the chunkiest fundraises of the year yet. The new funding will strengthen Pocket FM's push into the US market and also support global expansion as the company plans to expand into Europe and LatAm markets in 2024. This latest round brings Pocket FM’s total funding to date to $196.5 million, the company said in a release. The latest round was led by Lightspeed with participation from <keyword id="21028203" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="stepstone-group" source="keywords">Stepstone Group</keyword>. Pocket FM, founded in 2018, has been hailed as the ‘Netflix for Audio’. It has built a repository of exclusive audio series. It has over 100,000 hours of content, including over 2,000 exclusive audio series and more than 400,000 episodes across genres and languages. “What sets Pocket FM apart is its vision to set up a sustainable and profitable business, backed by its unique pricing strategy. It emerges as a great reference for the entertainment landscape, with its capability to demonstrate strong unit economics. They are not just building a new category but democratizing the entertainment landscape with a tech-driven approach,” said <keyword id="21028204" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="harsha-kumar" source="keywords">Harsha Kumar</keyword>, Partner at Lightspeed. The company said that it has surpassed $150 million in annual recurring revenue (ARR), and is growing at 57% quarter on quarter (QoQ). It has clocked over 20 million transactions in 2023. Pocket FM has put up an AI-led strategy for automation, content curation, production, and distribution. The company plans to leverage generative AI to scale its entertainment content offerings and build AI-powered personalized recommendations that enhance the overall user experience. “We identified an unexplored space in the entertainment industry driven by an increasing demand for audio fiction and crafted a playbook to address this opportunity across every key market," said <keyword id="20120566" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="rohan-nayak" source="keywords">Rohan Nayak</keyword>, CEO and co-founder of Pocket FM. The company announced its US entry in Q4 of 2022 and its revenue has surpassed $100 million ARR in the US market. The platform has approximately 10 million registered users in the US. "Our robust content library of audio series and a strong consumption behaviour on the platform is shaping the future of entertainment. Our focus remains on tapping into unique and exclusive stories to solidify our leadership in this emerging category and create a strong IP playbook. This latest funding validates our vision and the possibilities we bring to disrupt the industry,” said Nayak. It’s raining VC deals Apart from Pocket FM’s over $100 million fundraising deal, fintech Perfios raised $80 million to turn into a unicorn recently. VCs have been writing large-sized cheques this March. On Wednesday, yet another startup – homegrown wearables startup Ultrahuman said that it raised $35 million in a series B funding round. Lithium-ion battery pack maker Lohum also raised $50 million, while personal care brands The Ayurveda and Cureskin raised $27 million and $20 million, respectively. Social media discovery app Hunch too raised as much as $23 million. Apart from Perfios, yet another company, Krutrim AI also turned into a unicorn earlier this year. Sector experts believe that the funding winter <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/startups/news/a-thaw-in-startup-funding-winter-as-two-unicorns-emerge-within-a-quarter/articleshow/108585420.cms">that was set in 2022 is thawing</a>.

In one of the largest deals of 2024, Pocket FM raises $103 mn to strengthen its global push

Homegrown <keyword id="2435252" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="audio-streaming" source="Orion">audio streaming</keyword> platform <keyword id="11925561" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="pocket-fm" source="Orion">Pocket FM</keyword> on Tuesday announced that it has raised $16 million in <keyword id="392814" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="debt-funding" source="Orion">debt funding</keyword> from US-based <keyword id="630197" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="silicon-valley-bank" source="Orion">Silicon Valley Bank</keyword> (SVB) that went bankrupt and is now a division of First Citizens Bank. The new funds will be utilised for expanding the audio series library, augmenting the creator community and accelerating revenue, Pocket FM said in a statement. The platform clocked 12 times revenue growth last year, surpassing $25 million ARR (annualised revenue run-rate) in October 2022. "The debt funding we have secured gives us the resources to continue expanding our content library and build the largest audio series platform globally. We are excited to build on this momentum and bring our listeners even more engaging content," said Rohan Nayak, Co-founder and CEO, Pocket FM. Pocket FM has been witnessing strong adoption of audio series and growth in listening time, catering to an 80 million listeners community globally, with listeners spending an average of over 150 minutes daily. "Its unique approach to audio entertainment and impressive unit economics shows significant revenue potential in a massive addressable market. We are excited to work with Pocket FM and support the company's continued growth and success as its banking partner," said Chris Cameron, senior vice president at SVB. Founded in 2018, Pocket FM raised $93.5 million until Series C. With this new debt round, the total capital infusion has increased to $109.5 million. Pocket FM was built to redefine the audio OTT space by pioneering the audio-series category. Being the only long-form entertainment OTT in the audio landscape, it has emerged as the preferred digital audio destination for a refined and diverse storytelling experience with the audio-series format. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/google-pays-entire-1338-crore-penalty-to-cci-in-android-case/articleshow/99932555.cms">Google pays entire ₹1,338 crore penalty to CCI in Android case</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/sebi-fines-future-corporate-resources-kishore-biyani-13-others-for-open-offer-lapses/articleshow/99932723.cms">SEBI fines Future Corporate Resources, Kishore Biyani, 13 others for open offer lapses</a>

Pocket FM raises $16 million in debt funding from Silicon Valley Bank

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In one of the largest deals of 2024, Pocket FM raises $103 mn to strengthen its global push

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Pocket FM raises $16 million in debt funding from Silicon Valley Bank

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2020 IPL auction will see these 332 players trying their luck under the hammer

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