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Exclusive: CoinDCX co-founder partners with ISRO scientists to launch Astrobase, raises $10 Mn

EntrackrEntrackr · 1d ago
Exclusive: CoinDCX co-founder partners with ISRO scientists to launch Astrobase, raises $10 Mn
Medial

Exclusive: CoinDCX co-founder partners with ISRO scientists to launch Astrobase, raises $10 Mn The Bengaluru-based space tech company has raised over Rs 60 crore ($7 million) in its maiden funding round, led by venture firm BanyanCo, as per information sourced from the regulatory filings with MCA. CoinDCX co-founder Neeraj Khandelwal has partnered with senior ISRO scientists Devakumar Thammisetty, Pawan Kumar, and Prashant M to launch Astrobase, according to sources familiar with the matter. Astrobase aims to address the growing demand for satellite launches by building cost-efficient, high-payload launch vehicles. “The company is working on a methane oxygen full flow staged combustion engine designed to carry payloads ranging from 3 to 10 tonnes. It plans to offer three configurations of its launch vehicle: fully expendable, partially reusable and fully reusable, with a target launch cost of $300 per kilogram by 2034,” a person familiar with the matter said. As per sources, the company has secured an engine manufacturing facility in Bengaluru’s aerospace hub and is ready to begin production. “Astrobase is moving from research and development to manufacturing. It has completed engine and vehicle designs for an orbital-class launch system.” Entrackr estimates the startup’s valuation at approximately Rs 623 crore ($72 million) in this round. The company is preparing to raise additional capital, and its valuation will change accordingly. Following Entrackr’s story, Khandelwal clarified that the company has closed a $10 million seed round. He mentioned that the engine manufacturing facility is up and running, with 10 senior ISRO scientists on board. Over the past two years, spacetech startups are gaining momentum over the past few years. In 2024, 13 startups from the segment raised around $85 million in funding. In the ongoing calendar year, 10 such startups have announced their fundraise worth over $15 million. In 2025, the Indian government introduced a Rs 500 crore ($58 million) fund through IN-SPACe and approved a Rs 1,000 crore ($116 million) VC fund to support space-tech startups. The funds are intended to increase local development, reduce import reliance, and expand private sector participation in the space sector.

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Exclusive: Slice raises $8.6 Mn from CEO Rajan Bajaj

EntrackrEntrackr · 8m ago
Exclusive: Slice raises $8.6 Mn from CEO Rajan Bajaj
Medial

Consumer lending and payments startup Slice has raised Rs 71.7 crore (approximately $8.6 million) from its founder and CEO, Rajan Bajaj, via partly paid-up shares. This follows the company’s recent Rs 300 crore debt funding round, raised through convertible debentures co-led by Taneja Family Trust, Anju Family Personal Trust, UK2 Family Trust, and MN Family Trust. According to a special resolution passed by Slice’s board, 22,000 equity shares will be issued at an issue price of Rs 32,606 each, as per the company’s regulatory filing with the Registrar of Companies. Bajaj’s investment will be completed in one or more tranches and is designated for general business purposes. Slice offers a physical and virtual card aimed at millennials, allowing students and salaried professionals to purchase products and services online with collateral-free EMIs through its app, while also helping users build credit scores. The Bengaluru-based company has raised nearly $400 million in funding, including a $220 million Series B round led by Tiger Global and Insight Partners. According to TheKredible, Tiger Global is the largest stakeholder, followed closely by Insight Partners. See TheKredible for the complete shareholding pattern. While FY24 numbers are yet to be disclosed, Slice saw threefold growth in FY23, with revenue climbing to Rs 847 crore from Rs 283 crore in FY22. However, in pursuit of growth, Slice’s losses up by 59.8%, to Rs 406 crore in FY23 compared to Rs 254 crore in FY22. In 2024, several startup founders and executives have reinvested in their companies. Recently, Yubi founder and CEO Gaurav Kumar invested $30 million in his startup, while Oyo founder Ritesh Agarwal contributed $100 million through his Singapore-based entity, Patient Capital. Co-founders of EV firm Ather Energy, Tarun Mehta and Swapnil Jain, also invested $10 million in their company. Omnichannel jewelry startup Giva also raised an undisclosed sum from its senior management.

Exclusive: DealShare co-founder’s new startup Sports For Life raises seed round

EntrackrEntrackr · 8m ago
Exclusive: DealShare co-founder’s new startup Sports For Life raises seed round
Medial

Sourjyendu Medda, co-founder of social commerce platform DealShare, has ventured into the sportstech space with his new startup, Sports For Life, which aims to invest in and support the sports ecosystem in India, focusing on providing athletes with the necessary resources to excel. While Sports For Life has yet to announce its official launch, the Bengaluru-based startup has raised seed funding from individual investors and early-stage venture capital firm Roots Ventures. The board of Sports For Life’s parent company, Jambavan Academy, has passed a special resolution to issue 3,000 Seed CCPS to raise Rs 9.5 crore, according to its regulatory filings accessed by Entrackr. Roots Ventures invested Rs 5 crore, while ML Tondon and Sons HUF and Blume Ventures pumped in Rs 3 crore and Rs 1 crore, respectively. The rest of the amount was poured in by Kunal Shah’s QED Innovation and Himanshu Arora. According to TheKredible, the company is valued at Rs 36.65 crore ($4.3 million) following this seed round. Following the fresh funding, Roots Ventures has become the largest external stakeholder with a 12.08% stake, followed by ML Tandon HUF and Blume Ventures. Co-founders Sourjyendu Medda and Armaan Tandon collectively hold 66.83% of the company. See TheKredible for the detailed shareholding pattern. According to the firm’s website, Sports For Life is investing in sports academies across India, with the goal of creating a sports ecosystem that elevates the overall standard of sports in the country. Medda, who was one of the co-founders and a board member of DealShare before leaving in January, has also roped in Armaan Tandon, a former data and operations analyst at Cartesian, as a co-founder of Sports For Life. In 2024, several prominent startup founders have launched new ventures, many of which have already secured initial funding. Notable launches include ZeroPe by BharatPe co-founder Ashneer Grover, OppDoor by Flipkart co-founder Binny Bansal, Unikon by Bella Vita founder Aakash Anand, Gabit by Zomato co-founder Gaurav Gupta, Callmatic by Mitron TV co-founder Shivank Agarwal, and Lyskraft and Nurix AI by Cult.fit co-founder Mukesh Bansal.

Israel's Coralogix raises $115 Mn to fuel India expansion

EntrackrEntrackr · 16d ago
Israel's Coralogix raises $115 Mn to fuel India expansion
Medial

Snippets Israel's Coralogix raises $115 Mn to fuel India expansion This expansion follows Coralogix’s acquisition of Aporia in December 2024 and the launch of its Coralogix AI Center, which focuses on the performance, security, and governance of enterprise data. Israel-based cybersecurity company Coralogix has raised $115 million in its Series E round led by NewView Capital and included participation from Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and NextEquity. The funding values Coralogix at over $1 billion. All existing investors, Advent International, Brighton Park Capital, Revaia, Greenfield Partners, Red Dot Capital Partners, O.G. Tech, Joule Capital Partners, and Maor Investments, supported this funding round. The proceeds will be used to expand its office in Gurugram and hire more people in Bengaluru and Mumbai. It will recruit for roles in data science, AI, customer engineering, and enterprise sales. The expansion aims to serve sectors like BFSI, IT, telecom, logistics, and edtech in India. Coralogix offers a full-stack platform for application performance, security, and real-user monitoring. It prices its service by data volume and provides strong support to help businesses respond quickly and resolve issues. Coralogix already works with companies in India, including Postman, Meesho, BookMyShow, Razorpay, CoinDCX, BharatPe, and Delhivery. It plans to launch Olly, its new AI observability tool, to help businesses find and resolve issues quickly and meet compliance requirements.

Exclusive: Zetwerk raises $20 Mn from Wheelhouse Ventures

EntrackrEntrackr · 1y ago
Exclusive: Zetwerk raises $20 Mn from Wheelhouse Ventures
Medial

Business-to-business e-commerce unicorn Zetwerk has raised Rs 166 crore or $20 million from Wheelhouse Venture Capital in the ongoing Series F funding round. This is the maiden investment for Wheelhouse Venture in the Bengaluru-based firm. The board at Zetwerk has passed a special resolution to allot 40,81,593 Series F2 CPPS at an issue price of Rs 407.39 each to raise Rs 166.28 crore or $20 million, its regulatory filing sourced from the Registrar of Companies shows. As per startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, the firm has been valued at $2.8 billion in the new round, slightly higher than the $2.7 billion reported in its previous round of $120 million. Entrackr had exclusively reported the development in October 2023. Following the fresh proceeds, Wheelhouse got a little less than 1% stake in Zetwerk while Greenoaks remained the largest stakeholder with 21.63% followed by Peak XV partners and Lighspped. Its co-founders Srinath Ramakkrushnan and Amrit Acharya cumulatively command 15.56% of the company. Head to TheKredible for the complete cap table. Zetwerk partners with offline suppliers engaged in the fabrication, machining, casting, forging, and galvanizing of machine parts. Operational in over 15 countries, it claims to serve over 100 customers across more than 25 industries in India, North America, MEA, et al. Continuing its growth trajectory in the last fiscal year, Zetwerk’s GMV (gross revenue) surged 2.3X to Rs 11,448 crore while its losses grew 81% to Rs 109 crore in the same period (FY23).

Exclusive: upGrad raises $35 Mn debt from EvolutionX

EntrackrEntrackr · 1y ago
Exclusive: upGrad raises $35 Mn debt from EvolutionX
Medial

Edtech unicorn upGrad has raised Rs 287.5 crore (approximately $35 million) from EvolutionX. This is the first debt funding for the Mumbai-based company this year. The board at upGrad has passed a special resolution to issue 28,75,000 debentures at an issue price of Rs 1,000 each to raise Rs 287.5 crore or $35 million, its regulatory filing accessed from the Registrar of Companies shows. The company will use these funds for growth, operating expenses, and general corporate purposes, according to the filings. upGrad has raised over $650 million to date including $36.5 million via right issue from Teamsek, founder Ronnie Screwala, and other in March last year. The Temasek-backed company was reportedly in talks to raise $100 million to close the acquisition of online education firm Udacity. According to the startup data intelligence platform TheKredible, Temasek is the largest external stakeholder with 20.7% while Upgrad’s co-founder and chairperson Ronnie Screwvala holds a major 22.4% of the company. upGrad forayed into the offline higher education space in 2022 and invested $30 million to set up ten global campuses across India, the US, and other regions. upGrad experienced notable growth as its operational revenue increased by 72% to Rs 1,194 crore in FY23, up from Rs 692 crore in FY22. However, alongside this growth, the company’s losses also rose by 82% to Rs 1,114 crore in FY23. The company is yet to file its annual results for FY24.

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