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Deal Street: Unilever Pumps More Funds In Grocery Startup 

Five Indian startups raised Rs 600 crore in venture funding across sectors last week.

(Source: BloombergQuint)
(Source: BloombergQuint)

Five Indian startups raised Rs 600 crore in venture funding across sectors such as real estate, content and grocery, among others, last week. A Bengaluru-based startup led the investment pack.

Here’s what went on...

NoBroker Raises $51 Million From General Atlantic

(Source: NoBroker)
(Source: NoBroker)

Property listings platform NoBroker.com raised $51 million (around Rs 354 crore) in a growth round of funding led by private equity firm General Atlantic.

Existing investors SAIF Partners and BeeNext also participated, NoBroker said in a statement.

Founded in 2013, the Bengaluru-based startup helps users find homes without paying any brokerage. It also offers end-to-end services such as rent agreements and movers and packers in Mumbai, Bengaluru, Pune, Chennai and Gurugram. It, however, charges for the services it offers.

“This funding round will support us in our plans to expand operations,” Chief Executive Officer Amit Kumar said. The firm aims to use the funds to invest in home store—a one-stop shop for services, including loans, packers and movers, legal documentation, and financial services products.

NoBroker is said to have registered more than 2.5 million properties on its platform, with 6 million individuals availing of its services, the statement said.

Self-Publishing Platform Bags $15 Million

Self-publishing e-platform Pratilipi raised $15 million (Rs 104 crore) in a growth funding round led by China-based Qiming Venture Partners.

Existing investors Nexus Venture Partners, Omidyar Network India, Shunwei Capital, Contrarian Vriddhi Fund and WEH Ventures also participated in the round, the firm said in a statement.

The company aims to use the capital to improve its technology, besides increasing the number of writers on its platform.

Founded in 2015, the startup offers content in vernacular languages and has a discovery and reading platform for readers. It also allows writers to e-publish their poems, stories and other literary works. It offers services in English, Hindi, Urdu, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, Malayalam, Oriya and Kannada.

Milkbasket Raises Funds From Existing Investors



An Indian housewife shops for powdered milk at a New Delhi department store. (Photographer: Sondeep Shankar/Bloomberg News)
An Indian housewife shops for powdered milk at a New Delhi department store. (Photographer: Sondeep Shankar/Bloomberg News)

Micro-delivery grocery startup Milkbasket raised nearly $10.5 million (Rs 73 crore) in a fresh round of funding led by existing investor Unilever Ventures—the venture capital arm of consumer goods maker Unilever Plc.

Mayfield India, Kalaari Capital and Blume Ventures also participated in this round, Milkbasket said in a statement.

The company said it aims to use the funds to expand its operations, team building and for research and development. Founded in 2015, it operates in Gurugram, Noida, Ghaziabad and Bengaluru. It has more than 8,500 stock-keeping units, the statement said.

Others

  • Cityfurnish, an online rental marketplace for furniture and consumer appliances, raised $5 million (around Rs 34.67 crore) from Gmail creator Paul Buchheit and YouTube Co-Founder Steve Chen, the company said. Global Founders Capital, Venture Highway, Soma Capital, SCM Advisors, Boomerang Ventures and high net worth individuals also participated in the round.
  • Scooter rental platform, Vogo, raised $3.6 million (Rs 25 crore) in debt funding from existing investor Alteria Capital, it said in a statement.
  • Personal care brand mCaffeine raised $2 million (Rs 13.8 crore) in growth funding from a clutch of investors led by RP-SG Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund backed by RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group.