Logistics startup Blackbuck has received Rs 202 crore in a fresh round of funding, with Sequoia Capital coming in as a new investor. Sequoia’s SCI Investment VI fund has put in over Rs 100 crore, as per regulatory filings, while earlier backers such as Accel and Sands Capital put in the rest. Sequoia had earlier invested in logistics company Porter. Blackbuck CEO Rajesh Yabaji and Sequoia did not comment on the funding. Sequoia Capital had closed its sixth India-focussed fund in August at $695 million, making it the biggest venture capital firm in the country.
BlackBuck, started in 2015 to operate as a freight marketplace for businesses, has seen fast growth in the last two years, with revenue growing seven-fold in FY17 to Rs 566 crore, though losses also grew more than five times to Rs 86 crore. Blackbuck had also reached operational profitability in that financial year. The company has not filed its financials for FY18 so far.
Swedish furniture and home accessories company IKEA plans to invest nearly Rs 3,000 crore in the next three years to open three fulfilment centres (packing warehouses) in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi. The company would open the centres as an omni-channelling brand with large IKEA stores, city centre stores and online presence, deputycountry manager (Management) of IKEA India Patrik Antony told PTI here Friday.
IKEA is set to open its second store in Mumbai later this year, and would hold a ground-breaking ceremony on October 11 in Bengaluru, he said. The next store would be in Delhi, he pointed out. FreshMenu is looking at a valuation of $250 Mn with the upcoming funding round. The funds will be used for setting up more kitchens in the existing cities. It is also looking forward to expand in other cities such as Pune and Hyderabad.
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South Asia’s largest and world’s fastest growing hotel chain – today inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Government of Uttarakhand. With this signing, OYO Hotels has committed an investment worth INR 500 Crore to boost the tourism potential of the state by building a robust hospitality ecosystem.
As part of this MoU, OYO Hotels will be expanding its chain in the region by adding over 35,000 rooms in cities including Dehradun, Mussoorie, Rishikesh, Haridwar, Haldwani, Kashipur, Nainital, Mukteshwar, Bhawali, Bhimtal, Roorkee, Almora, Lansdowne, Binsar and Ranikhet.
E-commerce major Flipkart on Sunday said it is foraying into the insurance segment after securing a corporate agent licence. To begin with, Flipkart has partnered Bajaj Allianz General Insurance to offer customised insurance solutions to power its mobile phone protection programme for all leading mobile phone brands that are sold on its platform, Flipkart said in a statement. Under the programme, Flipkart will offer both cash payout option or free pick up, service and drop convenience to customers.
The insurance offering will be available from October 10, the start of Flipkart’s The Big Billion Days (TBBD). “In line with our customer-first policy and as the market leader in this segment, insurance felt like the logical next step in providing consumers with excellent after-sales care for their phones.
The plan, from purchase to claim, will be completely integrated into our online platform…” Flipkart senior vice president and head of Fintech Ravi Garikipati said. Tapan Singhel, MD and CEO of Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Co, said the two companies are starting with the complete mobile protection plan (CMP), adding value for millions of customers.
Renewable energy major Greenko Group has abandoned plans to buy AT Capital-backed Orange Renewable Power Pvt. Ltd, according to a media report.
The Greenko founder Mahesh Kolli as saying that the contract had expired because of a “technical” reason, but did not provide further details.
Greenko had in June agreed to acquire Orange Renewable for an equity value of $300 million (about Rs 2,000 crore). The deal’s enterprise value, including debt, was pegged at around $922 million.
It is reported that with the deal falling through, investment bank Rothschild has now kickstarted the process to find a fresh buyer for Orange Renewable.
VCCircle has reached out to Greenko and Orange Renewable for comment and will update the article as and when a response is received.
Orange Renewable was founded by Arvind Tiku, who also started private equity firm AT Capital.
New Delhi-headquartered Orange Renewable is a fully-owned subsidiary of Singapore-based AT Holdings Pte. Ltd.
As of June this year, Orange Renewable had 907 megawatt of solar and wind power assets under operation and near completion.
Greenko is backed by sovereign wealth funds GIC Holdings Pte Ltd and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).Both GIC and ADIA have invested heavily in Greenko in recent years.
In June, Greenko raised about $447 million (Rs 3,000 crore) in equity funding from the two parties.
Hyderabad-based Greenko owns and operates renewable energy assets across wind, solar and hydro segments. It has an installed capacity of 3.2 gigawatt across 13 states, according to its website.
Greenko’s previous acquisitions include the 2016 buyout of the Indian assets of US-based SunEdison Inc. Last year, it agreed to buy a stake in Pennar Renewables Pvt. Ltd .
Greenko is one of several renewable energy companies in India that are expanding, buoyed by the government’s target of setting up 100 GW of solar and 60 GW of wind capacity by 2022 as part of an initiative to reduce dependence on fossil fuels. This has also triggered a wave of consolidation in the sector.
Earlier this year, Greenko rival ReNew Power Ltd agreed to buy Ostro Energy Pvt. Ltd from private equity firm Actis in a $1.5 billion deal. It is reported in June that solar panel maker Waaree Energies Ltd was in talks with at least two renewable energy companies to sell its power generation assets after talks with ReNew Power fell through over a valuation mismatch.
Qualcomm has outlined plans to invest $400 million (about Rs 3,000 crore) to set up their campus in Hyderabad. This will be one of the largest investments by a marquee company, after the formation of Telangana in June 2014. Phase-1 of the project will include built-up space of 1.7 million sq ft, housing about 10,000 employees.
Vice-President of Engineering for Qualcomm, Shashi Reddy, and Director for Operations, Chandra Shekar Kumili, informed State IT Minister, K. T. Rama Rao, about growth plans for Qualcomm in the city during a meeting on Saturday. Qualcomm, as a leading tech innovator, has played a key role in driving the wireless revolution by making mobile communications more accessible and affordable.
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