Weekly rundown: Lead School becomes India's 6th edtech unicorn; fintech startups draw large bucks
Mumbai-based Lead School secured a fresh funding of $100 million at a valuation of $1.1 billion on Thursday, whereas fintech startups such as Refyne and FPL Technologies bagged significant venture capital rounds this week.
- Jan 15, 2022,
- Updated Jan 15, 2022 12:05 PM IST
Mumbai-based Lead School has become India's sixth edtech unicorn after Byju's, Unacademy, Eruditus, UpGrad and Vedantu. The 10-year-old company secured a fresh funding of $100 million at a valuation of $1.1 billion on Thursday. The deal makes it the third unicorn of 2022 after Mamaearth and Fractal.
The Series E round was led by WestBridge Capital and GSV Ventures. The company's valuation has doubled in the last nine months on the back of strong growth in its operating and financial metrics.
The current round is its fifth round of institutional funding since 2017. Lead Schools offers integrated curriculum and digital-learning solutions to affordable private schools.
Also Read: Edtech firm LEAD is 2022's third unicorn after $100 mn fundraise
Fintech startups Refyne and FPL Technologies bagged significant venture capital rounds this week.
Refyne, India's first and largest Earned Wage Access (EWA) platform, on Wednesday, announced the closing of an $82 million funding round led by Tiger Global.
The Series B round also saw significant contributions coming in from existing international investors - QED Investors, partners of DST Global, Jigsaw VC, XYZ Capital, and RTP Global - and new investor Digital Horizon.
QED Investors was also an investor in Pune-based FPL Technologies. The company secured $75 million as part of its Series C funding round, led by its existing investor - QED Investors along with Janchor Partners, Sequoia Capital India, Matrix Partners and Hummingbird Ventures.
Ankit Nagori-led cloud kitchen company Curefoods raised $62 million from Iron Pillar, Chiratae Ventures, Sixteenth Street Capital, Accel Partners and Binny Bansal.
Also Read: Salary-on-demand startup Refyne raises $82 mn in funding led by Tiger Global
While $52 million came in equity funding, $10 million came in debt financing from Alteria Capital, BlackSoil Capital and Trifecta Capital.
The company owns and operates multiple brands including EatFit, Yumlane, Aligarh House Biryani, Masalabox and CakeZone and runs over 100 cloud kitchens nationwide.
Data analytics and data engineering firm TheMathCompany bagged a $50 million funding round led by Brighton Park Capital with participation from existing investor Arihant Patni. The minority investment will be used to accelerate the company's expansion in the US and EU markets.
Game streaming and e-sports platform Rooter landed $25 million in a Series A funding round led by Lightbox, March Gaming, and Duane Park Ventures. 9Unicorns, ADvantage, Capital-A and Goal Ventures also participated in the round.
The company claims to have over 8.5 million monthly active users and more than 30 million downloads.
Mumbai-based Lead School has become India's sixth edtech unicorn after Byju's, Unacademy, Eruditus, UpGrad and Vedantu. The 10-year-old company secured a fresh funding of $100 million at a valuation of $1.1 billion on Thursday. The deal makes it the third unicorn of 2022 after Mamaearth and Fractal.
The Series E round was led by WestBridge Capital and GSV Ventures. The company's valuation has doubled in the last nine months on the back of strong growth in its operating and financial metrics.
The current round is its fifth round of institutional funding since 2017. Lead Schools offers integrated curriculum and digital-learning solutions to affordable private schools.
Also Read: Edtech firm LEAD is 2022's third unicorn after $100 mn fundraise
Fintech startups Refyne and FPL Technologies bagged significant venture capital rounds this week.
Refyne, India's first and largest Earned Wage Access (EWA) platform, on Wednesday, announced the closing of an $82 million funding round led by Tiger Global.
The Series B round also saw significant contributions coming in from existing international investors - QED Investors, partners of DST Global, Jigsaw VC, XYZ Capital, and RTP Global - and new investor Digital Horizon.
QED Investors was also an investor in Pune-based FPL Technologies. The company secured $75 million as part of its Series C funding round, led by its existing investor - QED Investors along with Janchor Partners, Sequoia Capital India, Matrix Partners and Hummingbird Ventures.
Ankit Nagori-led cloud kitchen company Curefoods raised $62 million from Iron Pillar, Chiratae Ventures, Sixteenth Street Capital, Accel Partners and Binny Bansal.
Also Read: Salary-on-demand startup Refyne raises $82 mn in funding led by Tiger Global
While $52 million came in equity funding, $10 million came in debt financing from Alteria Capital, BlackSoil Capital and Trifecta Capital.
The company owns and operates multiple brands including EatFit, Yumlane, Aligarh House Biryani, Masalabox and CakeZone and runs over 100 cloud kitchens nationwide.
Data analytics and data engineering firm TheMathCompany bagged a $50 million funding round led by Brighton Park Capital with participation from existing investor Arihant Patni. The minority investment will be used to accelerate the company's expansion in the US and EU markets.
Game streaming and e-sports platform Rooter landed $25 million in a Series A funding round led by Lightbox, March Gaming, and Duane Park Ventures. 9Unicorns, ADvantage, Capital-A and Goal Ventures also participated in the round.
The company claims to have over 8.5 million monthly active users and more than 30 million downloads.