Funding News
ZEVO raises undisclosed funding from Agility Ventures
Electric vehicle supply chain and warehousing startup on Wednesday said it has raised an undisclosed amount in funding from angel fund Agility Ventures.
Founded by Aditya Singh Ratnu and Dhruv Bhatia, ZEVO, which stands for zero-emission vehicle operations, helps companies electrify their supply chains from start to end.
“Their commitment to sustainability, innovative use of electric vehicles, and end-to-end supply chain solutions align perfectly with our vision for the future of logistics,” said Dhianu Das, Co-founder at Agility Ventures.
ZEVO said it will use the funds to expand its EV fleet size to 1000, including three-wheelers and four-wheelers, to enhance its last-mile delivery capability.
“We are already delivering for some of India’s largest and most successful companies and we believe there is a significant demand surge from Tier-2 cities in the years to come,” said Rantu, CEO of ZEVO.
Entrepreneur First ups investment in Indian startups to $100K
Early-stage investor said it has increased its initial investment amount in Indian startups to $100,000, from $75,000 earlier, in a bid to sharpen its focus and penetration in the country.
The investor’s current portfolio in India consists of over 40 startups such as AarogyaAI, MedPay, Fello, FloWorks, BharatMD, Beatover.AI, etc, across sectors including finance, health, and deeptech.
“This increased investment stands as a testament to our belief in the Indian market. We believe that a disproportionate share of the next decade’s deep tech giants will be built in India and we want to play a major role in making that happen,” said CEO and Co-founder of Entrepreneur First, Matt Clifford.
The company has also launched a programme to promote entrepreneurship in India, where it has selected 32 people from across the country. The programme will help them collaborate, form co-founder teams, and develop a startup idea.
Entrepreneur First will provide tools, advisory and required funding to help them launch this startup until it becomes an early-stage company.
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Other news
CIIE.CO, Reserve Bank Innovation Hub join hands to support women-owned MSMEs
IIM Ahmedabad’s entrepreneurship centre said it has partnered with the Reserve Bank Innovation Hub (RBIH) to launch a programme that can help women MSME owners access credit easily.
The two entities said they will focus on advancing ‘end-to-end digital straight-through process (STP) lending solutions for micro to medium-sized women-owned enterprises.
The Swanari Techsprint 2023–the name of the initiative–will also enable winners to do a paid proof of concept study with HDFC Bank, as well as offer access mentorship and help raising funds.
“Women entrepreneurs own and lead less than 20% of the MSMEs in India. Among several other factors, access to capital is a huge barrier for women looking to set up and grow their businesses” said Supriya Sharma from CIIE.CO.
Meesho to help digitise 10 million sellers by 2027
Ecommerce marketplace said it has set its sights on onboarding 10 million small businesses onto its platform by 2027, in a bid to help digitise them. Currently, Meesho has 1.3 million sellers on the platform.
“Our commitment to onboard 10 million sellers onto the platform by 2027 serves as a resounding testament to our ongoing mission of democratising internet commerce for all,” said Vidit Aatrey, CEO and founder at Meesho.
The Bengaluru-based company, last month, said it had attained profitability for the month of July 2023 at a consolidated level for the first time, thanks to growing order volumes and monetisation rate.
It did not disclose specific numbers, but stated that revenue grew by 54% over the last 12 months.
Shiprocket partners with Shopalyst to join the ONDC network
Ecommerce logistics company said it has partnered with discovery-led commerce platform Shopalyst to join the government-backed network as a seller.
The partnership will help merchants not selling online to easily start selling on ONDC, as well as improve their visibility. More importantly, the collaboration will help merchants in lower-tier cities list online and start selling to a wider audience.
“Digital commerce powered by ONDC will be a game changer for ecommerce brands in India,” said Girish Ramachandra, Co-founder at Shopalyst.
was the latest to join the ONDC network. The Tiger Global-backed startup said it will feature three of its brands on multiple buyer-side apps of ONDC.
(The copy will be updated with the latest news throughout the day)
Edited by Megha Reddy
