EarlySalary raised $110 million at $300m valuation from TPG’s Rise Fund, Norwest Venture Partners
Digital lending fintech
EarlySalary has raised $110 million (about Rs 878.8 crore) from investors co-led by private equity majors TPG’s Rise Fund and Norwest Venture Partners. With this funding, the valuation of the startup rose to $300 million. The Pune-based company said it plans to use the investment to accelerate its loan book, increase its presence to 150 cities, hire more for senior management functions, and grow the scope of its buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) business. EarlySalary, founded in 2015 by Ashish Goyal and Mehrotra, provides instant loans to salaried individuals earning between Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 10 lakh per annum.
Bharat Innovation Fund led $1.5-million funding in Human Edge
Human Edge, a longevity science company, raised over $1.5 million in new equity financing. The investment was led by Bharat Innovation Fund, along with Lead Angels and Force Ventures and a number of strategic angel investors from Singapore, USA, and India. The investment will allow Human Edge to streamline their platform through its first enterprise-wide mobile app experience targeted directly at the white collar employees. Founded by Dr. Marcus Ranney in late 2020, Human Edge approaches longevity by enhancing healthspan using science, deep data and technology based lifestyle interventions.
Onsite bagged $1.5 million in funding led by Foundamental
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Contractor management platform
Onsite raised $1.5 million in funding from Foundamental. Onsite aims to digitise India’s 10 million+ SME construction businesses and will use the funding to develop its platform and expand its technology team. Founded in March 2021, the Onsite app is a cloud-based platform that claims to 100,000+ contractors in financial tracking and team collaboration. The product is available in seven languages and used by contractors. According to its founders, Onsite is the first-of-its-kind in the APAC and we look forward to seeing the impact of this technology on the sector.
ETtechMyMuse raised $1.2 million in funding led by Saama Capital
MyMuse, a sexual wellness and bedroom essentials startup, raised $1.2 million in funding led by Saama Capital, with participation from Sauce VC and Whiteboard Capital. The startup plans to use the funds to grow its team, introduce a range of innovative products, strengthen brand positioning, and expand distribution. Launched by Sahil Gupta and Anushka Gupta, MyMuse is India’s first gender-neutral brand dedicated to sexual wellness. The brand claims to have witnessed around 40% month-on-month growth and served more than 15,000 customers across 281 cities and towns in India.
EV tech startup Electrifuel raked in $225,392 from Indian Angel Network
Electric vehicle (EV) technology startup
Electrifuel raised Rs 1.8 crore ($225,392) in funding from the Indian Angel Network (IAN), led by lead investors Vishnuraj Kunjur, Sahil Kejriwal, and Pradeep Gupta. The startup said it would use the funds to hire for multiple roles as it expands its team to scale production, and to invest in research and development (R&D). Founded in 2017 by Sumesh Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Abhishek Kumar, and Ujjwal Bhardwaj, Electrifuel helps EV and battery manufacturers provide products with precise geolocation and cellular connectivity, efficient and fast charging, battery swapping, warranty, and service management.
Other done deals:
■ Save Now Buy Later (SNBL) firm
Tortoise has raised an undisclosed amount in funding from Sriharsha Majety, cofounder of Swiggy, and Lizzie Chapman, cofounder of fintech ZestMoney. Founded in 2021 by Vardhan Koshal and Surya Harsha Nunnaguppala, Tortoise encourages saving up for large purchases. It provides users the ability to save up for their future purchases by creating a savings plan, and earning rewards in the process. It had earlier raised around $2.3 million this year from
Ventures, a part of global investment firm Temasek. The current funding is an extension of the seed funding round and is being referred to as a “mentors round” as the startup gets two founders as investors to help them strategise a faster growth plan.
