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XYXX announces ESOP buyback program

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XYXX announces ESOP buyback program
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Men-focused premium innerwear and lifestyle brand XYXX has announced its first Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) buyback. XYXXโ€™s ESOP programme was introduced 4 years ago, and employees who have completed their tenure are eligible for the buyback. According to the firm, the eligible employees are allowed to liquidate at a 6X premium on the allotted price with zero strike price. XYXXโ€™s ESOP buyback programme currently includes employees spanning from senior managers to heads of departments as well as executive leadership. The buyback comes within a year of XYXXโ€™s $13.5 million Series C round led by Amazon Smbhav Venture Fund. XYXX claims to have pan-India presence with over 22,000 touchpoints through top Multi Brand Outlets (MBOs), a strong modern trade presence with Shoppers Stop, and Reliance Trends, amongst others as well as Exclusive Brand Outlets (EBOs) in multiple key cities. Its products are available on website (xyxxcrew.com) and available on e-commerce marketplaces including Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra and Ajio. On Monday, audio series platform Pocket FM announced its first ESOP buyback worth $8.3 million. As per data compiled by TheKredible, the total EOSP buyback/payout/liquidity stood at nearly $802 million in 2023. In 2021 and 2022, the buyback amount was recorded at $440 and $200 million respectively. In 2024, MyGate, Classplus and Meesho also completed their ESOP buyback scheme.

RockClimber banks on authenticity and quality to tap into Indiaโ€™s beverage market

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RockClimber banks on authenticity and quality to tap into Indiaโ€™s beverage market
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India has a massive beverage market with many established brands, though several new players, such as Bira, have also made their mark. Considering the sheer size of the market, itโ€™s safe to say that thereโ€™s ample scope for newcomers. One such new player is RockClimber. The company creates fruit beverages and fruit spirits designed specifically for India, made from locally grown fruits like jamun, grapes, pomegranate, kiwi, mulberry, and litchi, among others. One of the companyโ€™s objectives is to help reduce fruit wastage and create a sustainable ecosystem for farmers and fruit produce. We spoke to Cofounder Hariprasad Shetty to learn more about RockClimber, what distinguishes it from the competition, and the roadmap ahead. Here are the edited excerpts: The beverage market is filled with multiple brands, including some very established ones. How do you plan to stand out from the competition? As a truly authentic fruit based beverage brand, we are committed to using high quality fruits with an experimentative approach to crafting unique fruit combinations that incorporate global flavour trends. This has allowed us to offer a very diverse range of exciting and refreshing beverages while keeping fruits at the center of everything we do. Thatโ€™s what makes us stand out from the rest of the competition โ€“ we see ourselves as fruit experts and our products are fresh and engage with the evolving consumer preferences. So our focus is on delivering an uncompromising product experience. We source the finest fruits from across the country. This commitment to authenticity and quality sets us apart from many competitors who rely heavily on artificial flavors and preservatives. And the traction we have had in the last three years also points to how we have been accepted in the market. [FY 22 7 Cr, FY 23 7 Cr, FY 24 25 Cr, FY 25 60-70 Cr domestic and 30-35 outside India = 100 Cr+ target] 140 strong distributor network across 11 states. 3 million + bottles of beverages sold. 3000 tons of fruits processed sourced from a farmer base of 200,000 small scale fruit farmers producing grapes, pomegranate, pineapple, jamun, strawberry, mango etc. What is your offline and distribution strategy, usually the key to robust growth in your category? Most of the work should happen before Day Zero โ€“ the launch day. We recognized early on that a robust distribution network is the backbone of success in this business. We adopted a systematic approach to build our distribution network from the ground up. Mapping out territories and identifying potential distributors and retailers who could penetrate different markets. We only went ahead with experienced and reputable distributors who had an in-depth understanding of local market dynamics and consumer preferences. What is your strategy for online? Are you considering partnerships with any quick commerce platform? Yes, now that we have a headway in the distribution aspect and have achieved product market fit, we are now going to go aggressive on the marketing front especially online channels. What are the incentives for a farmer dealing with your platform other than the convenience of direct sale and price? Farmers are looking for a stable assured source of income every year. Timely procurement of their fruit produce, immediate payments, reduction in time to sale, and providing access to a large pool of buyers are all the benefits farmers get by working with us. We started with 500 tons of fruit procurement, and now at over 5000 tons. We aim for 10X procurement volumes in the next 2-3 years, thereby contributing to 10 times reduction in fruit loss, and hence a direct positive impact on small scale farmers livelihood and stable income generation. As we expand our facilities, we aim to recruit local talent to be part of our company and thereby directly provide employment opportunities as well. RockClimber aims to: Scale to 10,00,000 farmer base in the next 3 years Platform building for farmer outreach, communication, and forecasting Patented mobile fruit processing system Export unit in select locations for UAE and Africa markets You also mentioned entering the UAE and Africa markets. What is your roadmap for global expansion? And why particularly these two markets? We expect 30-35% revenues coming in from global markets in the near term. Particularly markets like UAE are huge on experimentation as consumers there are well traveled and have an international palette. We see a large market opportunity in the innovative โ€“ new age beverage category in this region.

VLCC-owned Ustraa reports Rs 50 Cr loss with flat revenue in FY24

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VLCC-owned Ustraa reports Rs 50 Cr loss with flat revenue in FY24
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Menโ€™s grooming startup Ustraa was acquired by personal care brand VLCC through a share swap and secondary buyout in the first quarter of FY24. However, under the larger group, Ustraa experienced a slight decline in revenue along with an increase in losses. Ustraa recorded a 2.94% decline in its revenue to Rs 94.02 crore in FY24 from Rs 96.87 crore in FY23, according to its annual financial report with the Registrar of Companies. This marginal decrease indicates that it faced challenges in maintaining growth in a competitive market. Ustraaโ€™s 95.08% of total revenue came from the sale of products, which saw a 5.1% decline compared to the previous year. The company also gained Rs 4.7 crore from other sources taking the total income to Rs 94.27 crore in the last fiscal year. On the expenses side, the largest component was the cost of materials, which surged by 63.16% to reach Rs 60.4 crore. Employee benefit expenses saw a decline of 17.5% to Rs 20.94 crore. Advertisement expenses saw a significant reduction by 64.46% to Rs 17.09 crore. In contrast, the commission's costs rose by 43.82% to Rs 10.93 crore. With miscellaneous expenses, the total expenditure of Ustraa stood at Rs 144.6 crore, a 5.11% jump from Rs 137.57 crore in FY23. As a result, Ustraa recorded a 25.27% surge in losses to Rs 50.32 crore for FY24 from Rs 40.17 crore loss in FY23. The company's ROCE and EBITDA Margin stood at 284.01% and -51.16% respectively. On a unit basis, the company spent Rs 1.54 to earn a rupee of operating revenue in FY24. The cash and cash equivalents for Ustraa as of FY24 was recorded at Rs 6.89 crore, compared to Rs 1.17 crore in FY23. No other significant bank balances apart from the cash and cash equivalents were reported for FY24 and the trade receivables for Ustraa was Rs 7.46 crore in FY24. Founded in 2015, Ustraa offers products such as fragrances, hair care, face care, and beard care. Following its acquisition, the company's founders, Rahul Anand and Rajat Tuli, continued to work with the brand while also leading VLCC's D2C initiatives. Before the acquisition, Ustraa had raised over $10 million from investors, including Info Edge, Wipro, and IIFL, among others. The brand directly competes with Beardo, The Man Company, and Bombay Shaving Company. Notably, all these companies are operating at a loss and have either become part of a larger group or sold a significant stake to a major corporation. Bombay Shaving Company registered Rs 182 crore in revenue for FY23 and aims to achieve a topline of Rs 260-280 crore in FY24. Beardo saw a 12.2% increase in its FY23 revenue to Rs 106.6 crore, while The Man Company recorded Rs 115 crore in revenue for FY23. Their audited FY24 results are yet to be released. So far, the Ustraa acquisition seems to be following a predictable pattern of a cut in manpower and advertising costs, and topline stagnation with worsening bottom line. That is nothing odd simply because it is almost a template when a firm is acquired for these events to follow, as acquirers โ€˜clean upโ€™ legacy issues to try and start on a clean slate by the next financial year. The question is, will Ustraa survive the changes to deliver in the next financial year? Looking at the peer group, while profitability remains a challenge for all, topline growth should not be as difficult, especially if VLCC did the acquisition with a clear plan to infuse funds at a later stage. Where things get really sticky is when the parent firm runs into troubles of its own.

Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [29 Jul - 3 Aug]

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Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [29 Jul - 3 Aug]
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During the week, equivalent to 32 Indian startups raised around $341 million in funding. These deals count 6 growth-stage deals and 22 early-stage deals while 4 early-stage startups kept their transaction details undisclosed. During the previous week, 22 early and growth-stage startups cumulatively raised $113.39 million in funding. [Growth-stage deals] Among the growth-stage deals, 6 startups raised $216.8 million in funding this week. Mobility startup Rapido spearheaded with its $120 million worth of unicorn round. Fintech firm Navi, NBFC Clix Capital, Trade financing startup Vayana Network, fintech firm BharatPe, and sportstech company KheloMore followed with $38 million, $26.3 million, $20.5 million, $10 million, and $2 million in funding, respectively. [Early-stage deals] Further, 22 early-stage startups secured funding worth $124.24 million during the week. Renewable energy services company BluPine led the list followed by EV startups Simple Energy and Kinetic Green while wedding services company Meragi, and a platform for sourcing and manufacturing of specialty chemicals Scimplifyare are next on the list. As many as 4 startups did not disclose the funding amount raised are; BoldFit, Game Theory, Cogniquest, and Vitra.ai. For more information, visit TheKredible. [City and segment-wise deals] In terms of the city-wise number of funding deals, Bengaluru-based startups led with 16 deals followed by Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, Jaipur, Pune, Bicholim, and Surat. Segment-wise, Fintech startups grabbed the top spot with 6 deals. SaaS, AI, E-commerce, and EV startups followed this list among others. [Series-wise deals] During the week, Series A funding deals are on top with 11 deals each followed by 7 pre-Series A, 5 Seed, 2 pre-Seed, and 2 Debt deals. Angel, Series B, Series C, Series D, and Series E are next on the list. [Week-on-week funding trend] On a weekly basis, startup funding surged 200% to $341.04 million as compared to around $113.39 million raised during the previous week. The average funding in the last eight weeks stands at around $316.78 million with 29 deals per week. [Fund launches] Trifecta Capital, known for its investments in companies like Atomberg, BigBasket, and BlueStone, has launched its fourth fund with a potential corpus of Rs 2,500 crores. Gemba Capital is also expanding its portfolio with a second fund of up to Rs 250 crore. [Key hirings and departures] Hero Vired, the Hero Groupโ€™s online education platform, has appointed Prakhar Kasar as its new CEO. CoinDCX has elevated Mridul Gupta to the role of founding partner. Meanwhile, e-commerce firm Meesho has strengthened its board with the addition of four independent directors: Hari S Bhartia, founder of Jubilant Bhartia Group; Kalpana Morparia, former JP Morgan Chairman; Rohit Bhagat, non-executive Chairman of PhonePe; and Surojit Chatterjee, a former Flipkart executive. While, Prashant Sinha, co-founder and chief revenue officer of Metadome.ai, announced his exit from the company. [Mergers and Acquisitions] Infibeam Avenues, a financial services company, acquired a majority stake in Rediff.com. Additionally, SaveDesk, another financial services company, acquired a majority stake in the Bengaluru-based fintech startup Fairexpay. Nazara Technologies, a gaming company, acquired the intellectual property rights of the popular mobile game โ€œUltimate Teen Pattiโ€. [Shutdowns] Apollo Tyres faced a short-lived run with its doorstep car service initiative, Trumigo. Launched just six months ago, the service was discontinued due to a lack of customer traction and competition from established businesses in the market. Meanwhile, CarTrade, after acquiring OLX Indiaโ€™s business last year, decided to streamline its operations. The company will be shutting down its used car retail segment (C2B) to focus on the core classifieds business (Olx.in). [Potential deals] Raise Financial Services, the parent company of stock trading platform Dhan, is in talks to raise around $100 million in a new funding round. This investment is expected to propel the companyโ€™s valuation to between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion, securing its unicorn status. Another fintech player, M2P Fintech, is on the verge of closing a $80 million funding round, which will value the company at $900 million. Visit TheKredible to see series-wise deals along with amount breakup, complete details of fund launches, and more insights. [New launches] Delhivery to launch dark stores for e-commerce players Zomato to launch District app for dining out, events, ticketing biz [Financial results this week] Delhivery turns profitable with Rs 52 Cr PAT in Q1 FY25 Infibeam Avenue reports 43% growth in PAT in Q1 FY25 Zomato crosses $25 Bn market cap with Rs 253 Cr profits in Q1 FY25 Freshworks cuts losses by 14% in Q2; eyes $713 Mn revenue in CY24 CarTrade revenue and profit slip in Q1 FY25; shuts down used car retail biz Ideaforgeโ€™s profits dwindle 89% in Q1 FY25 Ixigo records 78% quarterly growth in PAT in Q1 FY25 Auxiloโ€™s profit jumps 2.5X in FY24; revenue grows double Ola Electric reports Rs 5,010 Cr revenue in FY24 FirstCry FY24 revenue crosses Rs 6,500 Cr; GlobalBees contributes 18.6% [News flash this week] Unicommerce and FirstCry files RHP as it gears up for IPO launch on Aug 6 PhysicsWallah launches Rs 250 Cr Scholarship Fund for JEE/NEET aspirants InsuranceDekho secures composite broking license Byjuโ€™s, BCCI settle payment dispute MapMyIndia accuses Ola Electric of copying data; Aggarwal calls them โ€˜Opportunistโ€™ MCA imposed penalty on Zerodha AMC and Nithin Kamath for delay In appointing CFO Avanse Financial Services refiles DRHP to SEBI for Rs 3,500 Cr IPO Infra.Market and Fractal are next in line to file DRHP soon [Conclusion] After a dip in funding, the weekly funding again rose up nearly 3X to $341 million across 32 deals. The week saw two VC fund launches namely Gemba Capital and Trifecta Capital. Logistics platform Delhivery plans to establish a network of multi-tenant dark stores to facilitate rapid in-city deliveries for e-commerce businesses. This move, coupled with their focus on shortening delivery times to 2-4 hours, aims to enhance the overall customer experience. Meanwhile, foodtech platform Zomato is diversifying its portfolio. It has introduced a new app called โ€˜Districtโ€™, dedicated to its โ€œgoing-outโ€ business. This app will encompass dining, movie ticketing, and event bookings, expanding Zomatoโ€™s reach beyond food delivery. The Indian IPO market is witnessing a surge in activity with multiple companies gearing up for their public debuts. E-commerce SaaS platforms Unicommerce and BrainBees Solutions, the parent company of FirstCry, are set to launch their IPOs on August 6th. Avanse Financial Services has refiled its IPO papers after addressing regulatory concerns, while Infra.Market is exploring investment banks for its public listing. Adding to the pipeline, SaaS unicorn Fractal is planning to file its DRHP soon. Byjuโ€™s has reached a settlement with the BCCI. The edtech giant has agreed to pay a Rs 158 crore debt to the cricket board in installments by August 9th. This comes after the BCCI initiated insolvency proceedings against Byjuโ€™s due to non-payment. While the settlement offers temporary relief to the embattled company, the NCLAT has imposed conditions to ensure the funds are not misappropriated. MapMyIndia has sent a legal notice to Ola Electric alleging that the latter copied its data after launching its own mapping service. Ola Electric had previously used MapMyIndiaโ€™s services for its electric scooters. Ola Electricโ€™s founder, Bhavish Aggarwal, has dismissed the allegations as opportunistic.

Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [22 - 27 July]

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Funding and acquisitions in Indian startup this week [22 - 27 July]
Medial

During the week, as many as 22 Indian startups raised around $113.39 million in funding. These deals count 5 growth-stage deals and 8 early-stage deals while 9 early-stage startups kept their transaction details undisclosed. During the previous week, 35 early and growth-stage startups cumulatively raised more $261.21 million in funding. [Growth-stage deals] Among the growth-stage deals, 5 startups raised $49.3 million in funding this week. Renewable energy firm Rays Power spearheaded with its $15.1 million funding. Education loan provider Auxilo, NBFC NeoGrowth, EV company Ather Energy, and wealth and asset management firm Neo followed with $12 million, $11.2 million, $7 million, and $4 million in funding, respectively. [Early-stage deals] Further, 8 early-stage startups secured funding worth $64.09 million during the week. Manufacturer of high precision tooling for aero-engines and airframes Unimech Aerospace led the list followed by wealthtech startup Stable Money, co-working solution provider Incuspaze, quick service restaurant chain Charcoal Eats, and D2C luggage brand Nasher Miles. Provider of smart building solutions Nhance, two-wheeler service provider VOC Automotive, and HR technology platform Umwelt also raised funding. As many as 9 startups did not disclose the funding amount raised are; Pneucons, Godaam Innovations, VedaFit Foods, Aqin Biotech, Mkelly Biotech, Devnagri, WTF, Empyreal Galaxy, and Mayhem Studios. For more information, visit TheKredible. [City and segment-wise deals] In terms of the city-wise number of funding deals, Mumbai-based startups led with 6 deals followed by Delhi-NCR, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad, Bareilly, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Nashik, and Rupnagar. Segment-wise, Agritech and Fintech startups grabbed the top spot with 4 deals each. E-commerce, Manufacturing, and Proptech tech startups followed this list among others. [Series-wise deals] During the week, pre-Seed, Seed, and Series A funding deals led the list with 5 deals each followed by 3 Debt and 1 Angel, pre-Series A, Series B, and Series C deals each. [Week-on-week funding trend] On a weekly basis, startup funding slipped 56.6% to $113.39 million as compared to around $261.21 million raised during the previous week. This is the lowest weekly funding in the last 15 weeks. The average funding in the last eight weeks stands at around $323 million with 27 deals per week. [Fund launches] India Accelerator has launched a new vertical to support cleantech startups with substantial funding. Former defense secretary Ajay Kumarโ€™s VC fund focused on defense, aerospace, and deeptech has successfully raised over its target corpus. Meanwhile, the Fashion Entrepreneur Fund has secured investments from prominent figures like Ravi Jaipuria and Akshay Kumar to empower fashion entrepreneurs in India. [ESOP buyback] Adda247 is buying back shares from over 130 employees at a price 40 times their initial purchase price. This move comes ahead of the companyโ€™s planned IPO in 2027. [Key hirings and departures] Ecom Express has strengthened its leadership by appointing Jitendar Kumar as Chief Business Officer and Abhinav Imandi as Senior Vice President. Meanwhile, Swiggy Instamart has expanded its team with key hires including Himavant Srikrishna Kurnala as SVP of Product, Mayank Rajvaidya as VP of Fruits & Vegetables, Manu Sasidharan as AVP of FMCG Category, and Kumar Rahul as AVP of Business Development. Drive FITT, Gupshup, and VC firm 360 ONE Asset Management also witnessed changes in their leadership teams. While, Asia managing partner of Eight Roads Ventures, Raj Dugar has reportedly stepped down after 17 years. [Mergers and Acquisitions] Business advisory firm Riveron has expanded its operations by acquiring Yantra. In the healthcare domain, Thyrocare has strengthened its presence in Northern India through the acquisition of Polo Labs. In the insurance and seafood industries, Acko and Captain Fresh have respectively acquired OneCare and Koral to bolster their market positions and service offerings. [Potential deals] Electric mobility startup Kazam is set to raise a $5 million funding round while Wingreens Farms seeking $4.3 million in debt financing. In the tech space, Glance is in advanced talks to raise $250 million, while Leap Finance is eyeing a $70-100 million round to achieve unicorn status. Additionally, Nykaa is securing Rs 125 crore through non-convertible debentures, as per media reports. Emami is set to acquire 100% stake in The Man Company, marking its entry into the D2C space. Visit TheKredible to see series-wise deals along with amount breakup, complete details of fund launches, and more insights. [New launches and partnerships] Google partners with ElectricPe to bring EV charging stations to Google Maps in India CRED launches financial management platform CRED Money [Financial results this week] Go Digitโ€™s revenue falls in Q1 FY25 but profit spikes 90% Waycool posts Rs 1,251 Cr revenue and Rs 686 Cr loss in FY23 Urban company claims Rs 827 Cr revenue in FY24; 70% cut in losses [Key highlights of the Union Budget impacting startups] Angel tax: The government abolished the Angel Tax for all investors, effective April 1, 2024. This should make it easier for startups to raise funding. Focus on MSMEs: The budget allocated Rs 2 lakh crore to support MSMEs (Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises) with a focus on employment, skilling, and other opportunities. Easier foreign investment: The government plans to simplify rules and regulations for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) to make it easier for overseas investors to invest in Indian businesses. Changes to tax rules: Non-reporting of movable assets up to Rs 2 lakh will no longer be penalized. While, income from share buybacks by companies will be taxed as dividends for the investor, starting October 1, 2024. [News flash this week] QIA seeks court injunction to halt sale or transfer of Byju Raveendranโ€™s assets UPI in June: PhonePe, Google Pay see marginal decline, Paytm records flat growth Paytm fined for ESOP stamp duty lapses, gets NOD to invest in payments arm Ola Electric to launch IPO on August 2 The RBI fined Ola Financial Services for flouting KYC & PPI norms Delivery startup Dunzo faces new insolvency threat Manipal Group gets green light to increase stake in Aakash Cashfree Payments first to secure RBIโ€™s cross-border payment license Google Maps to offer metro ticket booking in Kochi and Chennai Insurtech startup Covrzy gets broking license from IRDAI [Conclusion] The Indian startup ecosystem experienced a significant slowdown this week with funding plummeting by 56.6% compared to the previous week. While there were notable fund launches and new verticals emerging, the overall funding landscape was subdued. The Indian business landscape has seen a flurry of activity in recent weeks. Fintech giant Paytm has been fined for non-payment of stamp duties related to ESOPs, while simultaneously securing approval to invest in its payments arm. In the education sector, Manipal Health Systems is set to increase its stake in Aakash Educational Services. Bengaluru-based fintech startup Cashfree Payments has become the first company to obtain a Payment Aggregator Cross Border (PA-CB) license from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI). This license allows the company to process online transactions for both imports and exports, boosting cross-border trade and payments in India. Additionally, Google Maps is introducing a new feature that allows users in Kochi and Chennai to book metro tickets directly through the app. This service will be powered by the Namma Yatri app, which handles the payment and booking process. Cash-strapped delivery startup Dunzo is facing another legal challenge. A creditor has filed for insolvency proceedings against the company, claiming that Dunzo has only paid half of its owed dues. This is the latest financial setback for the Reliance-backed startup.

Startups rope in new CEOs amid cash crunch, layoffs, profitability and IPO plans

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Startups rope in new CEOs amid cash crunch, layoffs, profitability and IPO plans
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Management rejig and layoffs at several prominent startups have continued to make headlines this year. For layoffs, startups have cited a familiar reason i.e. redundancies, efficiencies as well as getting a step closer to profitability. As far as management changes go, reasons and circumstances vary. For instance, DealShareโ€™s CEO position was vacant for a long time. These changes, however, also bring a fresh wave of optimism in the ecosystem, which has of late faced a host of challenges, ranging from funding crunch to stringent regulatory actions. Data compiled by TheKredible shows that this year more than 10 Indian startups have appointed, elevated or are on the verge of naming their new chief executive officers (CEOs). The list includes the likes of DealShare, MyGate, Inshorts, Cult.fit, Third Wave Coffee, Byjuโ€™s, Ola, PhonePe, and Setu, among others. Interestingly, half of them have been elevated to the role of chief executive whereas some founders took charge as the operational leaders after the exit of the existing CEO. [Elevated CEOs] The year 2024 started with a new trend of appointing new CEOs and e-commerce platform DealShare was first when they elevated Kamaldeep Singh as the new chief executive of the company from being the president of their retail business. The firm faced several challenges during the second half of 2023 as its three co-founders left the firm in a short span of time and it also had to shut down its B2B vertical after a flat growth in FY23 with rise in losses. Community management app MyGate, news aggregator InShorts and fitness tech firm Cult.fit also elevated Abhishek Kumar, Deepit Purkayastha and Naresh Krishnaswamy, respectively, as their new chief executive officers. All previous CEOs of these three companies namely Vijay Arisetty, Azhar Iqubal and Mukesh Bansal have now taken the role of chairman. Iqubal recently joined Shark Tank India season III as a judge. Also, InShorts is pivoting from news aggregation to influencer led platform which could be the reason behind this reshuffle in leadership. Cult.fit also faced challenges early this year as it fired more than 150 employees. As per the company, it reduced some redundant positions with the aim of streamlining operations. Meanwhile, fintech unicorn BharatPe finalized Nalin Negi as its full time CEO. Negi, the former chief financial officer of the company, had been working as interim CEO since January last year. Freshworks also went through a reshuffle as the firmโ€™s founder Girish Mathrubootham stepped down from the position of CEO after 14 years. Mathrubootham has transitioned into the role of executive chairman while the companyโ€™s president Dennis Woodside has been elevated as the new CEO. Freshworks went public in September 2021. Itโ€™s important to note that most of these companies in this list had losses until FY23. Though, a few of them managed to control losses during the fiscal year. For context, DealShareโ€™s GMV remained flat but its losses jumped 14% to Rs 502 crore in FY23. InShorts posted flat scale with 33.6% jump in losses to Rs 310 crore in FY23. MyGate, Cult.fit and BharatPe also managed to control its losses. Check the graph below for more details. [New CEOs appointed in 2024] In January, PhonePe announced the appointment of Ritesh Pai as CEO of its International Payments business while Infibeam Avenues announced the appointment of Rajesh Kumar SA as CEO of its AI business venture Phronetic.AI. These appointments appeared to be a positive sign for both companies which are expanding their businesses. Third Wave Coffeeโ€™s co-founder and CEO Sushant Goel stepped down as the firmโ€™s chief executive role and transitioned to a board member in March this year. The WestBridge-backed company named KFC India and Nepal CEO Rajat Luthra as Goelโ€™s replacement. Before the exit of Goel, Third Wave Coffee also went through layoffs, firing more than 100 employees. In April, Aakash Educational Services, owned by edtech company Byjuโ€™s, appointed Deepak Mehrotra as its new managing director and chief executive officer. Mehrotra joined Aakash after the exit of its chief executive Abhishek Maheshwari. Recently, the firm raised money from Manipal Groupโ€™s Ranjan Pai to clear the debt raised from Davidson Kempner in May last year. Aakash has plans for a public listing this year. Last month, API infrastructure company Setu, owned by Pine Labs, named Anand Raisinghani as new CEO of the company. Raisinghani will succeed Sahil Kini, who is the erstwhile chief executive of Setu. Earlier this month, Paytm Moneyโ€™s CEO Varun Sridhar also quit the position and Rakesh Singh has been appointed as the new chief executive of the stock trading platform. Before joining Paytm Money, Singh was the CEO of fintech company Fisdom. On Monday, Adda247 appointed Bimaljeet Singh as its chief executive for skilling and higher education business. Like several edtech firms, Adda247 also went through layoffs in the last quarter of 2023. Itโ€™s worth noting that Paytm Money and Phronetic.AI are owned by public companies One97 Communications and Infibeam, respectively. In terms of financial performance, Aakash reported profit in FY22 and expected to replicate same growth in FY23. Pine Labs reported more than Rs 1,600 crore revenue with control in its losses to Rs 227 crore in FY23. Third Wave Coffee reported a three fold jump in its revenue with same growth in losses to Rs 54 crore in FY23. During FY23, PhonePe as a group posted revenue of Rs 2,914 crore and Rs 1,755 crore loss. During the period, Adda247 reported Rs 115 crore revenue and Rs 110 crore loss. [Founders, executives took the charge after CEOs exit] Last month, Arjun Mohan, the CEO of Byjuโ€™s India operations, stepped down from his position seven months after joining the edtech firm. After his exit, the companyโ€™s founder Byju Raveendran returned as the operational leader to see day-to-day functioning. During the process, Byjuโ€™s also sacked more than 500 employees. Itโ€™s worth highlighting that Byjuโ€™s has been facing a cash crunch for a long time and failed to pay the salary of its employees on time. Recently, Ola Cabsโ€™ CEO Hemant Bakshi left the firm after three months of joining. His departure came at a time when Ola is gearing up for an initial public offering (IPO). The company also fired 10% of its total workforce. In the interim, Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal will oversee operations until a new executive is appointed. In January, Indus Appstoreโ€™s CEO Rakesh Deshmukh announced quitting the firm. Since then, the firm has been led by โ its CPO and co-founder Akash Dongre, and CBO Priya Meenakshi Narasimhan. The firm is yet to announce the name of the official CEO. As per a media report, Beardoโ€™s CEO has gone on a year-long sabbatical from April this year. During his absence, CBO Siddharth Vaya, and Koteshwar LN, head of digital first business, are expected to lead the company. Beardo was acquired by Marico Group in June 2020. In the ongoing calendar year, Sukhleen Aneja, CEO of The Good Glamm D2C vertical and Subramanyam Reddy, CEO of upGradโ€™s Knowledgehut also announced their departure from the company. While Knowledgehut is yet to name the new CEO, The Good Glamm has decided not to appoint a new CEO for the D2C vertical. As per reports. Ketan Bhatia and Ankita Bhardwaj will lead the brandโ€™s business operations. Last month, The Good Glamm Group resorted to layoffs and went through top level restructuring as it is gearing up for public listing. More recently, Paytm Payments Bankโ€™s CEO and MD Surinder Chawla decided to hang up his boots. He will be relieved from his positions on June 26 while the firm is yet to announce his replacement. Public company Paytm laid off more than 1,000 employees in December 2023 in a cost cutting effort. As per reports, the firm also went through layoffs amid back to back departures of top level executives and the recent diktat by RBI. However, Paytm denied any fresh layoffs at the company. When it comes to financial performance, Byjuโ€™s and Ola are in deep losses and Beardo slipped into the red in FY23. Edtech unicorn upGrad reported close to Rs 1,200 crore revenue in FY23 with Rs 558 crore loss in FY23. Good Glamm Group is yet to file its annual financial report for FY23. [Conclusion] For those who have sniped at CEO salaries at startups, the last year should be a good indication of just why salaries refuse to moderate. Besides the high turnover, it is no secret that many investors and even founders have considered CEOโ€™s as a horses for courses option, taking in people with specific skill sets when they were relevant for the organisation. Thus, be it fundraising, cost cutting, or all out for growth mindset, we have seen how different CEOโ€™s bring their own competencies, which, unfortunately, have a use by date in most cases. Many of course can simply struggle to adapt to the startup culture and the unstructured challenges it throws up, which can be the worst outcome for a startup with little achieved during their tenures. Perhaps the toughest ask of a startup CEO is what she is expected to do in what seems like compressed time to most, making it most challenging to attract quality personnel at times. That is also one reason why we see investors take over the job of bringing in the CEO when they feel a founder needs to move on to a more strategic role or simply take a break from the intense pressure. Donโ€™t expect the CEO churn to slow down anytime soon for these reasons.

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