Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (March 12, 2025)

From Pawsitivity’s reflective collars saving strays and PB Fintech’s Rs 696 crore healthcare push to Bessemer’s $350M India fund, and Pi42 hiring ex-CoinDCX VP as CTO, YourStory brings you today’s headlines with the latest developments across sectors.

Featured Stories

How Pawsitivity’s reflective collars are ensuring safety of strays

Former teacher Rimjhim Joshi Shende turned her act of feeding strays into Pawsitivity, an initiative that has distributed over 10,000 reflective collars to prevent accidents.

Starting with handmade collars, she scaled operations to employ 150+ underprivileged women.

In 2023, QR code-enabled collars were introduced to help lost dogs reunite with caretakers. Pawsitivity also conducts school awareness sessions to foster compassion for strays.

Available online, the initiative has sold Rs 20 lakh worth of collars and plans to expand to protect cows on highways.

Read more.

PolicyBazaar parent to back healthcare push with Rs 696 Cr investment

PB Fintech, the parent of PolicyBazaar, is set to invest Rs 696 crore in its healthcare arm, PB Healthcare Services, as it ramps up expansion in India’s booming healthcare market.

Following the investment, PB Fintech will hold up to 33.63% of PB Healthcare’s equity on a fully diluted basis, alongside investments from CEO Yashish Dahiya, Executive Vice Chairman Alok Bansal, three key managerial personnel, and external investors.

The final shareholding may vary depending on the actual amounts invested. The investment, which will be made in equity shares and compulsory convertible preference shares (CCPS) during the financial year 2025-26, is subject to shareholder approval via postal ballot. PB Fintech’s board approved the move in a meeting held on Tuesday, according to a regulatory filing.

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Bessemer Venture Partners raises $350M for second India-focused fund

Bessemer Venture Partners on Wednesday announced the close of a $350 million India-focused fund—making this its second dedicated India fund and reinforcing its long-term strategy of investing in businesses across key sectors.

The venture capital firm’s new fund will prioritise investments in artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled services, SaaS, fintech, digital health, direct-to-consumer brands, and cybersecurity. Historically, Bessemer has supported startups in their early stages, with over 80% of its investments in India over the past five years directed toward young companies, the firm said in a statement.

Bessemer established its presence in India in 2006 and has invested in over 80 startups. The firm follows a roadmap-driven investment approach, allowing its team to build conviction in emerging industries before they gain mainstream recognition. This method helps founders navigate evolving industry landscapes with strategic insights and long-term support.

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Funding News

Sexual health startup Allo Health raises Rs 16 Cr from Rainmatter

Sexual health platform Allo has secured Rs 16 crore in a Pre-Series A round led by Rainmatter, alongside existing investors. The funds will accelerate clinic expansion, AI-driven treatment protocols, and patient-first healthcare innovations.

With over 200,000 patients treated and 35+ clinics in cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad, Allo has built a hybrid ecosystem integrating physical clinics, AI-powered treatment models, and structured doctor training programs.

Prior to this round, Allo had raised $4.4 million in seed funding from Nexus Venture Partners and industry leaders including Binny Bansal (Flipkart), Deepinder Goyal (Zomato), and Nithin Kamath (Zerodha & Rainmatter).

“We are not just building a business—we are building an ecosystem,” said Pranay Jivrajka, Founder and CEO of Allo Health. “Our focus is on patient outcomes, doctor training, and stigma-free, structured care, ensuring accessible world-class sexual healthcare in India.”

Allo plans to expand into diagnostics, digital therapy, and mental health, further strengthening its ecosystem while setting new standards in specialized healthcare innovation.

Upskilling startup Weskill closes pre-seed round at Rs 40 Cr valuation

AI-powered upskilling startup Weskill has closed its pre-seed funding round at a valuation of Rs 40 crore, securing capital from high-net-worth individuals (HNIs) and strategic investors.

The fresh funds will be used to expand operations and enhance Weskill’s AI-driven learning ecosystem.

Founded in November 2023 by Prashant Prakash Dubey, Weskill aims to bridge the growing skill gap between traditional college education and evolving industry demands. The startup offers AI-driven career counseling and personalised training modules to make upskilling more effective and job-oriented.

Weskill has partnered with IIT Guwahati's EICT program and multiple multinational corporations to deliver industry-relevant training. Its AI-based career counseling and mock interview platform has already supported over 170,000 students in advancing their careers.

Looking ahead, Weskill plans to scale its impact to 600,000 students over the next two years.

Other News

Pi42 appoints ex-Uber, CoinDCX tech leader Satish Mishra as CTO

Pi42, a crypto-INR perpetual futures exchange, has appointed Satish Mishra as its new Chief Technology Officer (CTO).

Mishra, formerly Vice President of Engineering at CoinDCX, brings over 18 years of experience in building secure, high-performance financial systems.

At CoinDCX, Mishra played a key role in developing scalable trading infrastructure and decentralized wallets. He has also held leadership roles at Uber, Druva, Symantec, and NVIDIA, contributing to secure and efficient digital asset platforms.

“We are thrilled to welcome Satish at such a pivotal moment for crypto in India,” said Avinash Shekhar, Co-founder and CEO of Pi42. “His expertise in high-availability blockchain systems will help us set new standards in trust, security, and scalability within decentralized finance.”

Mishra joins Pi42 amid rising adoption of crypto in India and growing global recognition of digital assets as strategic financial instruments. “The evolving blockchain landscape presents exciting opportunities, and I look forward to enhancing Pi42’s platform to support financial empowerment and innovation in India’s crypto market,” he said.

BRISKPE gets RBI in-principle authorisation for cross-border payments

Prosus-backed fintech firm BRISKPE announced on Wednesday that it has secured the Reserve Bank of India's (RBI) in-principle approval to function as a payment aggregator for cross-border transactions (PA-CB).

This approval, granted under the Payment and Settlement Systems Act, 2007, allows BRISKPE to facilitate both export and import payments, according to CEO Sanjay Tripathy.

BRISKPE is among the first platforms dedicated solely to cross-border payments and aligns with the RBI’s revised regulatory guidelines introduced in October 2023, the company stated. "With this authorization, BRISKPE is positioned to offer streamlined solutions for businesses facing challenges with inefficient international payment systems," it added.

Currently handling 10,000 export-related transactions per month, the platform anticipates a rise to 1 lakh monthly transactions by the end of the next financial year as it expands into import payments.

Godrej Capital incorporates Snowflake’s AI data cloud platform

AI data cloud company Snowflake said that Godrej Capital, the financial services arm of Godrej Industries Group, uses Snowflake’s AI Data Cloud as its integrated data platform to provide comprehensive, customizable, and flexible financing solutions for its customers.

Snowflake is enabling Godrej Capital to predict customer behavior and provide tailored services for customers across India, the company said. Godrej Capital can now manage risks, builds financial models and scorecards, streamlines regulatory reports, and makes data-driven decisions to improve its loan offerings.

Using Snowflake, Godrej Capital’s analytics team has built financial reports, meeting industry-standard regulatory compliance requirements to provide customers with the highest levels of assurance. Sales teams use analytics to track customer preferences and refine loan products for various needs. The company’s data governance is effectively maintained within Snowflake through clear policies, role-based access controls, and multi-factor authentication (MFA) based login, preventing unauthorised access.

UST opens new office in Pune

UST, a digital technology company, has inaugurated a new office in Pune, Maharashtra, further strengthening its India presence. Through this expansion, UST plans to create around 3,500-6,000 job opportunities in the next three to five years in Pune.

Serving leading global enterprises across industries such as fintech, healthcare and life sciences, retail and ecommerce, manufacturing, and automotive, the Pune center plays a key role in shaping digital transformation for UST’s global clients.

Last year UST opened a second office in Bengaluru along with a Design Experience Centre. The company also laid the foundation for its second-owned campus in Kochi, Kerala, with plans to create 3,000 jobs over the next five years. In 2023, the company also inaugurated a new office in Hyderabad.