Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (February 10, 2025)
YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Monday, February 10, 2025.
Swiggy's shares have declined more than 21% over the last week and over 26% over the last month as quick commerce competition heats up at the cost of rising expenses. Meanwhile, B2B ecommerce marketplace Solv is in advance talks to merge with Jumbotail as the space consolidates.
YourStory brings you all of today’s major developments across the Indian startup ecosystem on a single page.
Featured stories
How Zepto’s Pink Store in Chennai is redefining women workforce
Late last month, Zepto’s Co-founder and CEO Aadit Palicha officially announced the launch of Zepto’s first all-women dark store in Chennai’s Madambakkam, which is run by a team of 25 women.
“Across Zepto, 25% of picking and packing roles are filled with women, and in early morning shifts (6 am to 3 pm). We’ve observed that with the right support, women excel in roles traditionally dominated by men, from delivery partners to shift in-charges and operational leads," said Vikas Sharma, Chief Operating Officer (COO), Zepto.
This fintech startup enables loan against mutual funds in just 30 minutes
Quicklend, a fintech startup based in Bengaluru, was founded by Raghuram Tirkutam, Arun Jadhav, and Abhishek Uppala in December 2023. The company aims to offer a seamless platform where users can secure a loan against their mutual funds in just 30 minutes.
Currently, Quicklend facilitates the entire loan process for customers using its MF holdings. It has partnered with mutual fund distributors and other fintech firms to identify potential customers. It then connects them to financial institutions that provide the loans.
Sprih helps businesses measure and monitor their carbon footprint with ease
Founded in 2022 by Akash Keshav, Ravi Singhal, Rohit Toshniwal, and Hemant Joshi, Sprih leverages AI to simplify the measurement, benchmarking, and reporting of emissions across various scopes.
Sprih is headquartered in Delaware, while its Indian operations are based in Pune. It collaborates with companies across sectors such as manufacturing, construction, chemicals and IT to enhance their emission tracking, particularly within supply chains.
On cloud nine after Sachin Tendulkar's praise, this girl dreams of playing international cricket
The 10-year-old budding cricketer shot to fame when Tendulkar shared a video of her bowling action on social media, comparing her to fast-medium bowler Zaheer Khan, who was pivotal to India winning the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup.
In a recent cricket match in Jaipur, Sushila Meena showcased her skills by clean bowling Rajyavardhan Rathore, Minister of Youth Affairs in the Rajasthan government.
Fund of Funds 2.0: Why govt's Rs 10,000 Cr bet will transform India's manufacturing landscape
After creating 18 unicorns and mobilising Rs 90,000 Cr through its first Fund of Funds, the government is now focusing on triggering deeper tech innovation with fresh capital.
Also, the government should use the momentum to offer tax rebates to high-networth individuals (HNIs) to invest in these FFS programmes.
Latest news
Nykaa's Q3 profit jumps over 60% YoY as beauty segment shines
FSN E-commerce Ventures, the parent of beauty and personal care marketplace Nykaa, posted 27% year-on-year growth in its operating revenue as its bottomline swelled by more than 60% in the third quarter of FY25, driven by a boom in the beauty vertical.
The Falguni Nayyar-led company reported operating revenue of Rs 2,267 crore in the quarter ended December 2024, up from Rs 1,788 crore earned a year ago. This is in line with the company's expectations of achieving more than mid-twenties growth in revenue in Q3.
Funding news
Owl Ventures backs BorderPlus with $7M investment
Global workforce mobility platform BorderPlus has raised $7 million in funding, marking its first institutional investment round, led by Owl Ventures.
The round also included contributions from Binny Bansal, Mithun Sacheti, Ritesh Agarwal, Aakash Chaudhary, and Apoorva Patni.
The Energy Company bags $2M in pre-Series A round
Full-stack EV battery provider The Energy Company has raised $2 million in a pre-Series A funding round. The round saw participation from Siana Capital, Callapina Capital, Z21 Ventures, 1Crowd, LetsVenture, and other investors.
The company will use the newly raised funds to grow its full-stack battery intelligence platform, Flexi as well as scaling up its batteries, FlexiPack, for electric two-wheelers and e-rickshaws.
Triton announces first close of second fund at Rs 120 Cr
Mumbai-based venture capital firm Triton has announced the first close of its second fund, raising Rs 120 crore out of a targeted Rs 240 crore ($28 million). The new fund is over five times larger than its predecessor and will continue to focus on business-to-business (B2B) technology and tech-enabled services.
Venturi Partners invests $25M in footwear brand JQR, secures minority stake
Venture Capital firm Venturi Partners has invested $25 million in JQR (Just Quick Run), a brand in the affordable footwear segment. This marks JQR's first venture capital funding, with Venturi acquiring an undisclosed minority stake.
The funding will allow JQR to expand its offline presence in new markets, establish an online platform, and enhance its product offerings to meet India's rising demand for affordable, high-quality sneakers.
Rupeeflo raises $1M from Piper Serica to work on financial access for NRIs
Rupeeflo, a fintech platform, has raised $1 million in funding in a pre-seed round led by Piper Serica Angel Fund. Fintech veterans, including Ravi Shankar (Co-founder of Active AI), Kishore Natarajan, and Kedar Kulkarni (Co-founder of Hyperverge) participated in the maiden round.
Founded in 2024 by Dharmendra Maurya, Ashish Jha, and Manav Bharambe, Rupeeflo aims to enable seamless banking and investing for NRIs. It enables them to digitally apply for an NRE/NRO account and have access to stock markets, mutual funds, and index funds.
Other news
Okta appoints Shakeel Khan as regional VP and country manager in India
Okta, an independent identity provider, has appointed Shakeel Khan as Regional Vice President and Country Manager for Okta India to drive secure identity for organisations in India while also amplifying Okta's presence in the region.
With an impressive 27 years of experience in the cybersecurity industry, Khan will play a pivotal role in strengthening Okta’s position as a trusted partner in secure growth and digital transformation for Indian businesses, the company stated. From his background in pre-sales to becoming an enterprise sales leader, his expertise spans the full spectrum of the cybersecurity ecosystem. Based in Bengaluru, Khan will lead the company’s sales operations in India.
MSys Technologies acquires Gophers Lab
MSys Technologies, an IT services and digital transformation company, has acquired fintech Gophers Lab. The acquisition enables MSys Technologies to overcome obstacles of face scalability, performance, security, and regulatory compliance, and create next-generation AI-driven fintech and API ecosystems, the company said.
Gophers Lab’s expertise in Golang, fintech, and Google Cloud will significantly enhance MSys Technologies' capabilities, driving innovation in FinTech solutions and API development, deployment, and scalability across industries, it added.
This acquisition was guided by SA Global Advisors.
Manish Kumar forms V4B.ai, an AI-driven content agency
Entrepreneur and digital expert Manish Kumar, Founder of SS Yoga App by Shilpa Shetty Kundra and Digi-Osmosis, has announced his new AI venture Videos4Businesses.
V4B is an end-to-end AI-powered content agency that specialises in creating branded content without the need for actors or video shoots. Blending cutting-edge production technologies like motion capture, CGI, Unreal Engine, and multiple AI platforms, V4B aims to deliver quality, scalable, cost-effective and quick business content solutions.
Its custom AI-powered multi-lingual audio-video chatbot replaces the need for existing text chat-bots, FAQs and call centres, and acts as a 24/7 sales representative or training tool, providing consistent, on-demand interactions without any human, the company shared.
Illuminate 3.0: Experts discuss AI and emerging tech
illuminate 3.0, a leading public forum by L&T Technology Services Limited and The National Institute of Engineering (NIE), brought together leading experts to discuss the role of emerging technologies and AI in driving a sustainable and inclusive future.
Srikanth Nadhamuni, Founder CTO, Aadhaar, and Gayatri Chauhan, Founder and CEO of BuzzOnEarth, shared key perspectives and experiences.
Nadhamuni spoke about his journey in driving the success of Aadhar, the unique digital public infrastructure project uniting 1.4 billion Indians. Chauhan touched upon the major environmental challenges facing us today, and how technological breakthroughs can address the scenario in a sustainable and inclusive manner. The panellists discussed the need to scale modern technologies for the benefit of the maximum number of citizens.
Ravi Venkatesan joins ServiceNow’s Global Advisory Council
ServiceNow, a digital workflow company, has appointed Ravi Venkatesan as a member of ServiceNow’s Global Advisory Council (GAC).
Venkatesan will play a pivotal role in enhancing ServiceNow's engagement with its customers and industry leaders to solve their biggest challenges, the company said, leveraging his extensive experience as Chairman of the Global Energy Alliance for People and Planet (GEAPP) and his deep expertise in leadership, innovation, and global collaboration.
Venkatesan brings a wealth of experience, having held pivotal roles as Chairman of Microsoft India, Cummins India, and Infosys, where he successfully guided these organisations through significant growth and transformation phases.
Canara Bank appoints Dr Madhavankutty G as chief economist
Canara Bank has appointed Dr Madhavankutty G as the chief economist, effective January 2025. In his new role, Dr Madhavankutty will be responsible for providing strategic advice and inputs to the top management on domestic and global economic and financial sector developments.
Dr Madhavankutty brings with him over two decades of extensive experience in economic research, spanning the banking sector, large conglomerates, and academia. Prior to joining Canara Bank, he served as a senior economist at Bank of India, Aditya Birla Group, and the Times Group.
India’s first Drone Centre of Excellence launched in Odisha by MP Sujeet Kumar
Member of Parliament Sujeet Kumar established India’s first-ever Drone Centre of Excellence (CoE) under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) in partnership with IG Drones.
Located in the gram panchayats of Sagada and Bhatangpadar in Odisha's Kalahandi district, these centres represent a significant leap toward empowering tribal youth and women through advanced skill development in drone technology. This is the first time that such centres of excellence have been launched under the flagship scheme by the central government, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2014 to drive inclusive rural development.
Adopted by MP Sujeet Kumar under the SAGY initiative, Sagada and Bhatangpadar villages have undergone remarkable transformations. By allocating Rs 10 lakh from his MPLADS fund, Kumar has brought cutting-edge technological education to these underserved areas.
India’s gaming industry celebrates the first Mabel Addis Women in Games Month
India's gaming industry is kicking off its first-ever Mabel Addis Women in Games Month, aiming to shine a light on the contributions and challenges of women in the workforce. Despite making up nearly half of the gaming community in India—44%, or more than 260 million gamers—women remain underrepresented in game development, design, leadership, and innovation roles.
Named after Mabel Addis, who created The Sumerian Game in 1964, the initiative honours her role as one of the first female game designers. The Sumerian Game, which is often regarded as one of the first narrative-driven video games, was an important step in the development of interactive storytelling in gaming. Despite the significance of her work, Addis’s contributions remained largely overlooked for years.
Tazapay appoints Navin Mistry as Country Director
Tazapay, a rapidly emerging leader in the fintech sector specialising in cross-border payments, has appointed Navin Mistry as Country Director for the India and MEA (Middle East and Africa) markets.
Bringing over 24 years of experience building large-scale businesses across e-commerce, payments, and shipping, Navin Mistry is a growth-oriented leader with a proven track record. He has successfully led teams as a corporate leader, intrapreneur, and entrepreneur—holding key positions at prominent organisations such as Baazee, eBay, Flipkart, PayPal, and Shiprocketx. His expertise in driving innovation and growth in digital payments and ecommerce will be invaluable as Tazapay expands its global footprint.
Meta’s Fundamental AI Research (FAIR) is expanding AI support for underserved languages
Meta FAIR is expanding AI support for underserved languages to promote linguistic diversity and inclusivity in the digital world. In collaboration with UNESCO, we’re inviting partners to enhance AI translation technologies, contribute to open-source datasets, and advance multilingual AI models, ensuring more people can access and benefit from AI-driven communication.
Additionally, Meta has shared that its FAIR lab in Paris has been advancing AI research for over a decade.
"Today, in collaboration with BCBL, we're sharing two breakthroughs that bring us closer to advanced machine intelligence (AMI). Our latest studies demonstrate how AI can decode sentences from non-invasive brain recordings with up to 80% accuracy and uncover how the brain transforms thoughts into words, paving the way for new brain-computer interfaces to restore communication," it stated.
(This copy will be updated with the latest news throughout the day.)
Edited by Kanishk Singh
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