Indian Startup Highlights: Funding & Acquisitions [May 12-17]

During the week of May 12 to May 17, 2025, the Indian startup ecosystem experienced a notable decline in funding activity. A total of 28 startups secured approximately $194.22 million across various stages, marking a significant 67% decrease from the previous week’s $585.71 million.

Growth-Stage Funding Highlights

Growth and late-stage startups attracted nearly $137.2 million this week. Leading the pack was Farmley, a direct-to-consumer (D2C) snacking brand, which secured a Series C round led by L Catterton. Battery technology company VFlowTech followed with a $20.5 million Series B round. Other notable deals included:

Nobel Hygiene: A disposable hygiene products manufacturer, raised $20 million through a mix of primary and secondary transactions.
Celebal Technologies: An IT services provider, secured funding to expand its service offerings.
Avammune Therapeutics: A biopharmaceutical company, attracted investment to advance its research initiatives.
Hocco: An ice-cream brand, received capital to enhance its market presence.
M1xchange: A digital invoicing and discounting platform, garnered funds to scale its operations.
Biryani Blues: A quick-service restaurant (QSR) chain, obtained investment for expansion.
An omnichannel jewelry retailer: Secured funding to strengthen its retail footprint.

Early-Stage Funding Insights

Seventeen early-stage startups collectively raised $57 million. Leading this segment was Complement1, an oncology-focused startup, which secured a $16 million seed round. Other significant early-stage deals included:

Flam: A mixed reality startup, attracted investment to develop immersive technologies.
Hyperbots and Adopt AI: Artificial intelligence startups, secured funding to advance AI solutions.
TIEA Connectors: A manufacturing firm, received capital to enhance production capabilities.

Additionally, Cryptique, an intelligent analytics and attribution platform, raised an undisclosed amount to further its analytics services.

City and Sector Distribution

Bengaluru continued to lead in funding deals, with 12 startups securing investments, followed by Delhi-NCR with seven deals. Mumbai, Jaipur, and Ahmedabad also saw startup funding activities.

Sector-wise, healthtech startups topped the list with four deals, followed by foodtech and AI startups, each securing three deals. Other sectors such as media & entertainment, logistics, and fintech also attracted investments.

Series-Wise Funding Breakdown

Seed funding dominated the week with 12 deals, indicating a strong pipeline of nascent ventures. This was followed by Series B, Series A, and Series C rounds, reflecting a balanced distribution across various growth stages.

Mergers and Acquisitions

The week witnessed strategic mergers and acquisitions aimed at market expansion and capability enhancement:

Capillary Technologies: An AI-powered loyalty management firm, acquired Kognitiv, a provider of omnichannel loyalty solutions, to strengthen its North American presence.
Curefoods: Secured pan-India rights for Krispy Kreme, marking its entry into North India’s market.

New Fund Launches

The investment landscape saw the introduction of new funds targeting early-stage ventures:

BAT VC: Founded by former X India head Manish Maheshwari, announced a $100 million fund to support early-stage Indian startups.
Kriscore Capital: Launched its debut fund with an initial corpus of Rs 100 crore ($23.3 million), focusing on early-stage Indian tech startups.

Notable Appointments and Departures

Key executive movements included:

Amagi: A cloud-based media SaaS company, appointed two independent directors in compliance with the Companies Act, ahead of its IPO.
Swiggy Instamart: Announced plans to appoint a new Senior Vice President to lead its operations.
Pankaj Goel: Stepped down as Chief Technology Officer of BharatPe, a position he held since July 2023.

Financial Performance Highlights

Several companies reported their financial results for the quarter:

Delhivery: Reported a profit of Rs 70 crore in Q4 FY25, with a 6% revenue increase.
PB Fintech: Achieved Rs 1,508 crore in revenue for Q4 FY25, with profits tripling compared to the previous quarter.
Quikr: Posted its first-ever profit in FY24 but reported only Rs 20 crore in current assets.
Ixigo: Recorded Rs 284 crore in revenue for Q4 FY25, with profits increasing 2.4 times.
SoftBank: Reported a $7.4 billion profit in FY25, with significant investments in AI and semiconductor sectors.

Industry Developments

The startup ecosystem also saw notable developments:

PayU: Received final authorization from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as an online Payment Aggregator, enabling it to onboard new merchants.
Leap.club: A women-only community startup, announced the cessation of operations due to high customer acquisition costs and retention challenges.
PhonePe: Maintained its dominance in India’s UPI ecosystem in April 2025, processing 8,362.31 million transactions worth Rs 12.05 lakh crore, accounting for 46.73% of total volume and 50.32% of total value among top UPI apps.
Zepto: Launched Zepto Atom, a subscription-based platform offering brand partners real-time market data and consumer behavior insights.

This week’s activities underscore the dynamic nature of India’s startup ecosystem, reflecting both challenges and opportunities in the current economic landscape.