Funding and acquisitions in Indian startups this week [Sep 21

This week, 17 Indian startups raised $188.49 million across two growth-stage deals, 12 early-stage deals, and three undisclosed rounds. The week also saw 2 key appointments, one fund launch and one merger and acquisition.

In contrast, 17 startups had collectively secured about $61.8 million in the previous week.

Growth-stage startups raised $162 million across just two deals this week. Electric mobility startup Ultraviolette secured $85 million in a round led by Yali Capital and TDK Ventures, with participation from Walden International chairman Lip-Bu Tan and existing investors. Enterprise AI startup Ema raised the remaining $77 million in a Series B round led by Creaegis. Ema was founded by Surojit Chatterjee, a former executive at Google and Coinbase.

Early-stage startups raised $26.49 million across 12 deals this week. Electric commercial mobility startup Drivn’s Indian entity raised Rs 45 crore ($4.7 million) in a seed round led by Avaana Capital. AI-powered health coaching platform Disha, formerly Curelink, secured Rs 43.88 crore in a Series A round led by General Catalyst, with participation from existing investor Elevation Capital.

Medicine quick-commerce platform Rio Health raised Rs 43.08 crore ($4.5 million) in a pre-Series A round led by Version One Ventures, with participation from Xeed Ventures, Good Capital and Amplify Partner. Proactive AI startup Sol raises $4 Mn from General Catalyst, Nexus VP, and others

Other funded startups included fintech and brokerage startup Definedge, lab-grown diamond jewellery startup ONYA, healthtech Betterhood, high-protein frozen food brand Protein Pantry and four others.

On-demand convenience platform TimBuckDo, Primary healthcare infrastructure company MyRx and Carry-first streetwear brand Indian Walker also raised funding this week, but did not disclose the amounts.

Bengaluru again led the funding charts with eight startup deals during the week, followed by Delhi-NCR with six deals. Pune, Goa and Hyderabad also recorded deals.

AI startups led the sectors with four deals, followed by healthtech and e-commerce startups which grabbed three deals each. Meanwhile Mobility, quick commerce, fintech, foodtech, lifestyle and HR Tech also saw funding activity.

Seed rounds led the week with six deals, followed by pre-series A and pre-seed with four deals and three deals respectively. Series E, Series B, Series A and angel funding recorded one deal each.

On a weekly basis, startup funding jumped over 3X to $188.49 million from $61.8 million raised in the previous week.

The average weekly funding over the past eight weeks stood at around $232.88 million across 21 deals.

Only two key hirings were recorded this week. Digital lending platform Olyv appointed Ravi Sharma as its CFO. Sharma brings over 17 years of experience in financial services and previously served as CFO at Finova Capital.

Functional medicine company iThrive appointed Saloni Kulkarni, its former head of Client Services, to its Board of Directors.

Private equity firm Samara Capital has acquired stakes in Associated Road Carriers (ARC) and Calyx Container Terminals to build an integrated logistics platform.

Early-stage VC firm Lavni Ventures has closed its second deep-tech impact fund at its Rs 200 crore ($21 million) target corpus, with an additional Rs 100 crore green-shoe option. The fund will back Indian deep-tech startups building scalable solutions across health and climate sectors.

▪️ SRM University AP launches UNITES Global Innovation Society

SRM University AP, in association with APSCHE, has launched the UNITES Global Innovation Society to bring together scientists, academia, industry, government and young researchers to address societal challenges. Hosted by the university’s Centre for Interdisciplinary Research, the initiative aims to promote collaborative research, innovation and scientific exchange across disciplines.

▪️ Nykaa and L’Oréal’s venture fund BOLD join hands to invest in Indian beauty startups

Nykaa has partnered with L’Oréal’s corporate venture capital fund, BOLD, to jointly invest in emerging Indian beauty and personal care brands. The two companies will acquire minority stakes in high-growth startups and provide strategic mentorship, combining L’Oréal’s global expertise with Nykaa’s retail and distribution network. Founders will retain operational and creative control of their businesses.

▪️ Pine Labs to Deploy 10 Lakh Soundboxes Across India to Power Digital Commerce

Pine Labs has announced a strategic investment to deploy 10 lakh Soundboxes across India to strengthen digital payments infrastructure. The initiative aims to expand UPI adoption across new markets and business segments as digital payments gain traction beyond small-ticket transactions.

▪️ MOS Utility subsidiary SIGN receives RBI's in-principle approval for online payment aggregator licence

MOS Utility subsidiary Samvriddhi Inclusive Growth Network (SIGN) has received RBI's in-principle approval to operate as an online payment aggregator. Subject to final authorisation, SIGN plans to offer UPI, card, QR-based and net banking payment solutions to merchants, with a focus on small businesses in rural and underserved markets.

▪️ NSE makes muted debut, lists at Rs 1,800 with 0.84% premium

The National Stock Exchange (NSE) made its stock market debut on Thursday, September 24, with its shares listing at Rs 1,800 on the BSE, a 0.84% premium over its IPO price of Rs 1,785. The listing follows NSE's Rs 22,561 crore IPO, which was subscribed 5.71 times, with bids for 50.58 crore shares against 8.86 crore shares on offer. The issue was entirely an offer for sale (OFS), with no proceeds going to NSE.

▪️ PB Fintech shares fall over 30% after IRDAI proposes lower insurance commissions

Shares of PB Fintech, the parent company of Policybazaar, plunged over 30% on Thursday after insurance regulator IRDAI proposed tighter commission caps and changes to insurance distribution rules. The stock fell to Rs 1,282 from its previous close of Rs 1,886.30, amid concerns that lower commissions could impact the earnings of insurance distributors. The proposed reforms cover life, health, and general insurance, along with stricter expense limits and greater transparency in insurance sales.

▪️ Mastercard sells entire 4.31% Pine Labs stake for Rs 934 Cr

Mastercard exited Pine Labs by selling its entire 4.31% stake for Rs 933.5 crore through a bulk deal on Tuesday. ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, Societe Generale and Citigroup Global Markets Singapore were among the key buyers.

▪️ Spinny confidentially pre-files IPO; appoints Ex Bharti executive Akhil Gupta as board chairman

Used-car retailing platform Spinny has confidentially filed its draft IPO papers with SEBI, according to sources. The company plans to raise around Rs 2,500-3,000 crore through a mix of fresh issue and offer for sale (OFS), targeting a 2027 listing. Kotak Mahindra Capital, Morgan Stanley and Citigroup are working on the proposed IPO.

▪️ AceVector files RHP for Rs 287 Cr fresh issue, turns free cash flow positive in FY26

SoftBank-backed AceVector, the parent of Snapdeal and Unicommerce, has filed its RHP with SEBI for an IPO comprising a Rs 287 crore fresh issue and an OFS of up to 4.12 crore shares. Starfish I and Nexus entities will account for the majority of the OFS, while co-founders Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal will not sell their shares. The IPO follows AceVector turning free cash flow positive in FY26.