Listed below are some of the major news of the startup sector, take a look to stay updated:
True Balance Gets $23 Million In Funding
True Balance, a digital wallet, and financial services platform, on 20 April raised $23 million.
The funding round saw participation from Japan-based global messenger Line Ventures Corporation, Korean search engine Naver, Korean bank Shinhan Bank along with TS Investment and others.
The firm said it intended to use the funds for talent acquisition and expanding the benefits of need-based financial services.
Shilpa Shetty Kundra invests $250K in baby care products startup, MamaEarth
Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty Kundra has invested $250,000 in MamaEarth–an online baby care products startup. The Delhi-based startup will be using the fresh proceeds to enhance awareness of the brand, expand product categories as also scale up its offline footprint and distribution.
MamaEarth was founded in 2016 by a husband and wife duo Varun and Ghazal Alagh. The startup is present in stores across Delhi, Mumbai, and Bengaluru and plans to expand to 10 cities with the fresh fund infusion. It is backed by Fireside Ventures.
MamaEarth claims to present across 300 stores and currently clocks a monthly gross merchandise volume of Rs 1 crore.
Hostel and apartment rental listing startup Zocalo raises fresh capital
Brokerage free hostel and apartment rental listing platform Zocalo secured fresh funding of Rs 1.4 Cr from Xander Group–a global real estate & investment firm.
Zocalo (a Mexican term for a public square or plaza) covers over 100 areas in Delhi-NCR. The Android app-based platform has seen over 1,500 downloads.
Founded by Uday Lakkar, an IIM-Ahmedabad alumnus, and a former McKinsey executive, Zocalo is a broker-free platform that offers listings of paying guest, hostel, shared and rental apartment accommodation.
Ebix acquires a majority stake in Smartclass for $8 million
The US-based insurance software service provider Ebix has entered India’s e-learning market by acquiring a majority stake in e-Smartclass Educational Services Private Ltd (Smartclass) for $8 million.
Smartclass is a leading e-learning company catering to the K-12 education sector in India. Under the terms of the agreement, Ebix will pay in cash for its stake buy. After the acquisition, the platform will be integrated into Ebix’s education and e-learning initiatives in India, a statement said.
Today’s Take Away:
We often look at the successful entrepreneurs and muse about their secret to success. People say that everything is fair in love and war and considering the stiff competition entrepreneurs live in daily, it’s nothing less than war.
But, Phil Knight, co-founder of Nike, believes that one should,
“Play by the rules, but be ferocious.”
