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Economic Times
3 days ago
- Business
- Economic Times
Rohit Kapoor on Swiggy's food delivery slowdown; Group life insurance gains traction
Happy Tuesday! As the food delivery market cools, aggregators are scrambling to find growth avenues. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch. Also in the letter: ■ Krutrim AI's uptake struggles ■ ETtech Done Deals■ Tata Electronics' Malaysia foray Pushing value meals and 10-min food delivery to revive growth: Swiggy's Rohit Kapoor Rohit Kapoor, CEO (food marketplace), Swiggy As the food delivery market cools, Swiggy is turning to quick meals, affordable combos, and deeper city penetration to stoke demand. What's happening: In an exclusive interview with ET, Swiggy's food marketplace CEO Rohit Kapoor said growth will now come from low-frequency users and category innovation, not merely from city expansion. He also called for a more open dialogue between platforms and restaurants on commissions. Swiggy is focusing on three key growth drivers in food delivery: Expanding delivery-friendly categories Drawing low-frequency users into the fold with value bundles Scaling 10-minute deliveries via its Bolt platform By the numbers: Swiggy's food delivery GOV grew 17.6% YoY in Q4 Bolt now accounts for 12% of Swiggy's delivery volumes Food delivery covers around 700 cities; density, not geography, is now the focus Also Read: How Swiggy and Zomato are dealing with the slowdown in food delivery Why it matters: With quick commerce eating into food delivery profits, Swiggy and Zomato are under pressure to revive their core businesses. Kapoor says there's latent demand to tap — but unlocking it depends on restaurant supply, better aggregator-partner dynamics, and faster fulfilment. On restaurant partners: Aggregators' ties with restaurant partners have been strained in recent years over the commissions rates. Kapoor acknowledged the need for more conversation, but argued the current narrative often overlooks the larger economic shift aggregators have enabled. Also Read: Swiggy Food CEO Rohit Kapoor sees Bolt as core future offering New-age life insurance firms tap group products to boost business Acko, Go Digit and CreditAccess, three new-age life insurance players licensed in 2023, have completed their first full financial year in FY25. Industry data shows that in their initial phase, all three have leaned heavily on group insurance policies to drive early growth. Driving the news: Data sourced from the Life Insurance Council reveals sharp contrasts in their premium collections. Acko has written life insurance premiums worth Rs 63 crore. Go Digit has crossed Rs 1,000 crore. CreditAccess has processed close to Rs 200 crore in life insurance premiums. Different paths: Go Digit continues to scale rapidly in general insurance, while Acko is betting on a digital-first, direct-to-consumer model to disrupt traditional distribution. Beyond the numbers: Early trends suggest that the trio have focused on employer-employee group life products and credit-linked insurance policies. Why this strategy? It allows for quick ramp-up in premium volumes It helps test systems and processes for corporate sales, ahead of a retail push. It ensures a smoother claims settlement experience for customers. Challenges remain: While these players made waves in general insurance, industry insiders say life insurance will be a tougher battleground. Why is that? Trust takes longer to build in life insurance Higher ticket size products need more persuasion and often, physical intermediation. Claims settlement is complex and often requires last-mile human support Also Read: Go Digit General Insurance doubles net profit in Q4 FY25; posts third straight profitable year Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees. The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship opportunities. Krutrim finds few takers for its LLMs and cloud products Bhavish Aggarwal, founder, Krutrim In a setback to Bhavish Aggarwal and the broader Indian AI ambitions, several founders and investors told ET that Krutrim large language models (LLMs) and cloud offerings have received a lukewarm response from the market. Driving the news: Krutrim, the AI venture backed by the Ola group, became India's first AI unicorn in 2024, after raising $50 million at a $1 billion valuation. But the company has since faced product roadblocks and leadership churn. Founders cited poor documentation as a key issue with Krutrim's products. They also flagged a lack of technical maturity. Many startups continue to prefer established hyperscalers like Google Cloud and Amazon Web Services. More than 20 employees have exited the company since 2024. Tell me more: Krutrim offers a chatbot and cloud services, but usability issues persist. Two founders reported difficulties simply logging into the chatbot. Similar issues surfaced with Krutrim AI model also suffers from high latency, which refers to response time, deterring potential users. In tests reviewed by ET, Krutrim's AI chatbot took 41 seconds to generate a response to a single prompt. In contrast, ChatGPT-4o and DeepSeek responded in under 10 seconds. Also Read: Social media abuzz about toxic work culture at Ola Krutrim after employee's 'suicide' ETtech Done Deals Vaibhav Gupta, CEO, Udaan Udaan closes latest funding round at $114 million: B2B ecommerce platform Udaan has raised $114 million in a fresh funding round led by existing investors, M&G Prudential (UK) and Lightspeed Venture Partners. Round details: The round closed at a flat valuation of $1.8 billion and includes the previously disclosed $75 million investment from the same two investors, which founder and CEO Vaibhav Gupta announced at a town hall earlier this year. Furniture retailer Pepperfry raises Rs 43 crore: Omnichannel furniture and home goods company Pepperfry has raised Rs 43.3 crore from existing investors Norwest Venture Partners, Goldman Sachs, General Electric Pension Trust, Growth Equity Opportunity Fund, and Panthera Growth Partners, among others. Wealthtech startup Stable Money raises $20 million: Wealthtech startup Stable Money, which provides digital fixed-return investment products, has raised $20 million (Rs 173 crore) in a funding round led by Infosys cofounder Nandan Nilekani's Fundamentum Partnership. Other Top Stories By Our Reporters Tata Electronics eyes Malaysia foray via chip fab acquisition: Tata Electronics is in talks with several global semiconductor companies including X-Fab, DNeX and Globetronics to acquire a fabrication or outsourced semiconductor assembly and test (OSAT) plant in Malaysia. Infosys paid CEO Salil Parekh Rs 80.62 crore as salary in FY25: Indian IT major Infosys chief executive officer (CEO) Salil Parekh received a 22% rise in his annual compensation to Rs 80.6 crore for the fiscal year 2024-25 ending March, the company's annual report showed. Nykaa shares drop over 5% despite strong Q4 performance: Shares of Nykaa parent FSN E-commerce declined as much as 5.11% to 192.85 a piece during Monday's trade. The scrip closed 4.33% lower at Rs 194.45 per share, compared to a 0.09% decline in the benchmark Sensex. The counter opened 1.1% lower at Rs 201, against the previous closing of Rs 203.25 on the BSE. Tesla unlikely to make in India: All you need to know | Electric vehicle maker Tesla, helmed by Elon Musk, is not keen on manufacturing in India despite the government wooing it aggressively through policy incentives. Global Picks We Are Reading ■ A Neuralink rival just tested a brain implant in a person (Wired) ■ 'Humanity deserves better': Jony Ive and Laurene Powell Jobs on tech's next chapter (FT) ■ This giant microwave may change the future of war (MIT Technology Review) Updated On Jun 03, 2025, 07:21 AM IST
Economic Times
29-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Dhan's funding nears close; BNPL gets regulated out
Happy Thursday! Stock broking startup Dhan is poised to finalise its long-awaited funding round. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch. Also in the letter: ■ Petcare opportunity ■ Veterans enter AI chip space■ TCS CEO pay hike Dhan closes in on $200 million fundraise from Chrys Cap, Alpha Wave, MUFG Pravin Jadhav, founder, Dhan Online investment platform Dhan is set to close a $190–200 million funding round, making it the latest entrant to the coveted unicorn club. Driving the news: The Mumbai-based startup is finalising a new round led by ChrysCapital, with participation from Alpha Wave and Japanese financial services giant MUFG. Sunil Bharti Mittal's family office and Dream11 founder Harsh Jain, an existing investor, will also join the round. Deal details: The fundraise includes a mix of primary capital and secondary share sales The round values Dhan at $1.1 billion, making it India's fifth unicorn of 2025. Google and Amazon may come in through a smaller follow-on round. Dhan, in numbers: Active traders: 971,000, as of March 2025 971,000, as of March 2025 Net profit: Rs 155 crore in FY24, against loss of Rs 22 crore in FY23 Rs 155 crore in FY24, against loss of Rs 22 crore in FY23 Revenue: Rs 380 crore in FY24, 600% up from Rs 54.2 crore in FY23. Zoom out: Dhan's fundraise comes as Groww, India's largest stockbroker by active clients, gears up for an IPO. While many peers have lost ground, Dhan has grown its user base, thanks to a profitable business model and a sharp focus on sticky, high-frequency power management startups are navigating a choppy start to 2025, amid tighter regulations on F&O trading and a post-bull market cooldown. Dhan, however, is bucking the trend. BNPL hits the brakes as fintechs pivot to EMI loans and traditional consumer credit Buy-now, pay-later (BNPL) products are losing momentum amid regulatory tightening and growing concerns over credit quality. Losing takers: PayU has migrated LazyPay into a KYC-compliant EMI checkout solution. Paytm shut down its BNPL product last year. Mobikwik has discontinued Zip Loans, according to its FY25 earnings disclosure. Simpl remains one of the few major players still active in the BNPL space. Quote, unquote: 'Fintechs are finding that instalment financing is still viable, but only through a regulated, KYC-compliant setup. The shift is forcing many players to abandon pure-play BNPL and embrace structured EMI lending,' a senior executive at a large fintech company told us on the condition of anonymity. Zoom out: The credit tightening goes beyond fintechs. Banks and NBFCs — key partners in BNPL lending — are pulling back due to rising macroeconomic risks and growing exposure to unsecured loans. Also Read: Listed fintechs feel the pinch of lenders going slow on unsecured lending Karur Vysya Bank, which backs Amazon's BNPL programme, struck a cautious tone during its recent analyst call, noting it has tightened onboarding norms. Bigger story intact: Despite the pivot, industry insiders say the broader story of unsecured consumer credit growth remains unchanged. What's changed is the format: The industry is shifting away from short-term, low-ticket loans with loose underwriting towards EMI-based products with complete Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, longer tenures, and stronger risk controls. Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees. The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship opportunities. VCs sniff opportunity as petcare expands beyond food A post-Covid surge in pet adoption, the expansion of petcare services, and the rise of quick commerce are drawing both venture capital and strategic investors to India's growing petcare space. Funding frenzy: On Monday, Nestlé SA announced a minority investment in Drools, making it a unicorn. Supertails, backed by Fireside Ventures, is in talks to raise $24–25 million in fresh funding. Gurugram-based veterinary care startup Vetic recently raised $26 million in a round led by Bessemer Venture Partners. Industry outlook: Over the past five years, petcare startups in India have secured $198 million across 20 deals. The Indian petcare market, currently valued at $3.5 billion, is projected to double to $7–7.5 billion by 2028. Pet ownership has grown steadily, with the number of pets in Indian households rising from 26 million in 2019 to an estimated 32 million by 2024. Tell me more: Pet parents are moving beyond need-based purchases, increasingly spending on grooming products, clothing, toys, and more. While the market is currently dominated by Mars, the maker of Pedigree and Royal Canin, D2C brands are rapidly gaining ground. Quick commerce is fueling growth, enabling faster access to pet supplies and expanding consumer demand, according to industry experts. Ex-intel, AMD executives throw hat into AI semicon ring Around a dozen senior professionals from tech giants such as Intel, AMD, and Texas Instruments, each with 15-20 years of experience, are now leading AI semiconductor startups in India. Tell me more: Four Texas Instruments executives launched C2i Semiconductors, which is building hardware designed to reduce energy consumption in chips. Bodhi Computing, founded by Intel veterans Sambit Sahu and Raghuraman Barathalwar, was acquired by Krutrim in 2023. Agrani Labs, set up in Bengaluru by four ex-Intel and AMD executives, is working on India's own AI chip designs. Zoom out: India is rapidly emerging as a hub for chip design and development, with increasing momentum to establish comprehensive, full-stack semiconductor ecosystems. Startups beyond the AI space have also drawn investor interest in the past year, including Mindgrove Technologies, InCore, and Agnit Semiconductors. Other Top Stories By Our Reporters K Krithivasan , CEO, TCS TCS paid CEO K Krithivasan Rs 26.5 crore in FY25: Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) paid its chief executive, K Krithivasan, Rs 26.5 crore in the financial year 2025, representing a 4.6% increase from the previous fiscal year. This total includes a base salary of Rs 1.4 crore, benefits, allowances, and prerequisites worth Rs 2.13 crore, as well as Rs 23 crore in commissions. Zetwerk sharpens focus on capital goods equipment business: Contract manufacturer Zetwerk has launched a dedicated division within its electronics manufacturing branch, aimed at producing equipment and capital goods. Karnataka to issue draft gig workers' welfare rules in two weeks: Karnataka will release draft rules on charging a fee on online platforms to fund welfare programmes for gig workers in about two weeks, state labour minister Santosh Lad told us, a day after Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot approved an ordinance to this effect. L Catterton to raise $600 million for its first India-dedicated fund: LVMH-backed L Catterton is raising $600 million for its inaugural India-focused fund, marking the first time a global private equity firm has launched an investment vehicle specifically for the Indian market. Snabbit raises $19 million to fund expansion: Quick home services app Snabbit has raised $19 million in a funding round led by Lightspeed. The new capital will be used to expand into new micro-markets and strengthen the team amid rising demand. Global Picks We Are Reading ■ If algorithms radicalize a mass shooter, are companies to blame? (The Verge) ■ Grand Theft Auto publisher swaps DEI for 'Diversity of Thought' in annual report (Wired) ■ Microsoft starts testing Copilot for Gaming in Xbox app for iOS and Android (TechCrunch) Updated On May 29, 2025, 07:11 AM IST
Economic Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Citykart's big haul; A new AI race
Happy Tuesday! Value fashion retailer Citykart has raised fresh funds to fuel its expansion plans. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch. Also in the letter: ■ Flipkart's growth charge ■ Earnings corner■ Agentic AI in BFSI TPG NewQuest, A91 back Citykart in Rs 538 crore round at Rs 1,400 crore valuation Sudhanshu Agarwal, founder, Citykart Citykart, a value retail chain serving middle- and lower-income consumers in smaller Indian cities, has raised Rs 538 crore in a funding round led by TPG NewQuest and A91 Partners. The mix of primary and secondary transactions pegs the company's valuation at around Rs 1,400 crore, people familiar with the matter told us. Deal details: Rs 120 crore in fresh capital will fund expansion beyond Citykart's core markets of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Rs 418 crore was raised via secondary share sales. Middle East-based alternative asset manager Investcorp has exited fully, clocking a 4x return on its 2019 investment. Another early backer, India SME Investments, has pared its stake by half. About the company: Citykart operates 137 stores across tier-II and tier-III cities, with plans to add 40–50 outlets annually in states like Rajasthan, Odisha, Assam, and Jharkhand. Revenues have grown by nearly 70% over the last two financial years to over Rs 900 crore in FY25. Founder and MD Sudhanshu Agarwal said the company expects to cross Rs 1,300 crore in revenue in FY26, and noted that Citykart has remained consistently profitable for the last five years. Context setting: Citykart plays in the mass-market apparel segment alongside listed firms such as VMart and private players like Vishal Mega Mart and Style Baazar. The fresh round underscores growing investor appetite for affordable fashion targeting India's non-metro consumers. By comparison: VMart, a listed peer, is valued at Rs 5,500–6,000 crore and has an annual revenue of Rs 2,300 crore (around 2.5x sales). Vishal Mega Mart, backed by Partners Group and Kedaara Capital, was last valued at nearly $1.3–1.5 billion (Rs 10,000–12,000 crore) with revenue exceeding Rs 7,000 crore. Style Baazar, a regional player, has a comparable store count but a smaller scale and revenues of around Rs 500-600 crore. Post-deal, TPG NewQuest has emerged as Citykart's largest institutional investor, followed by A91 Partners and India SME. Pet food brand Drools turns unicorn after Nestlé SA picks up minority stake Homegrown pet food brand Drools turned unicorn after Swiss packaged food giant Nestlé SA acquired a minority stake for an undisclosed amount. Hot cake: This is Drools' second major raise after LVMH-backed private equity firm L Catterton invested $60 million in June 2023 at a valuation of $600 million. The transaction underscores rising investor interest in India's $3.5 billion pet care market, with players like Godrej and Emami planning a foray. Slikk raises $10 million: Bengaluru-based 60-minute fashion delivery startup Slikk has raised $10 million in a funding round led by Nexus Venture Partners. Operation Coding war, thanks AI A fresh front has opened in the AI wars, as global tech giants and nimble startups race to dominate the future of software development. What's happening: Google has unveiled its coding agent Jules. Microsoft has launched its GitHub AI agent. OpenAI has rolled out Codex and acquired Windsurf to bolster its arsenal. Rapid adoption: Google and Microsoft say AI now writes around 30% of their code. At InMobi, founder Naveen Tewari claims the figure is already 50%. The AI coding tool market is projected to reach $12.6 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 28%, according to market intelligence firm MarketsandMarkets. The draw? A compelling mix of higher productivity, intuitive interfaces, and strong value-for-money. Challenges: But, as AI writes more code, teams are left reviewing more of it. Several founders we spoke to said they've automated large parts of the review process to avoid any customer-facing fallout. Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees. The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship opportunities. Flipkart reports up to 25% growth amid ecommerce slowdown Kalyan Krishnamurthy, group CEO, Flipkart Flipkart group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy outlined the company's growth trajectory and IPO plans at an internal town hall on Monday. What's new: Krishnamurthy told employees that Flipkart is seeing 20–25% year-on-year growth in orders across its platforms in May, with expectations of hitting 30% growth in June, defying a broader slowdown in the ecommerce sector. Why it matters: The update comes as Flipkart prepares to shift its domicile from Singapore to India, aligning with domestic regulations ahead of a planned IPO in 2026. By the numbers: Zoom out: Krishnamurthy and top executives Ramesh Gururaja, Hemant Badri, and Seema Nair used the town hall to lay out priorities across supply chain, customer experience, and group is also focusing on Gen Z consumers through fashion, travel, and Shopsy, its value platform competing with Meesho and Amazon Bazaar. FirstCry's Q4 loss widens to Rs 111 crore; full-year Ebitda improves Supam Maheshwari, CEO, FirstCry Brainbees Solutions, which operates omnichannel baby products retailer FirstCry, reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 111 crore in Q4 FY25, widening from Rs 43 crore in the year-ago period and Rs 15 crore in the previous quarter. Operating revenue stood at Rs 1,930 crore, up 16% year-on-year but down 11% sequentially. Nazara Technologies Q4 revenue nearly doubles; net profit rises to Rs 4 crore Nitish Mittersain, CEO, Nazara Technologies Online gaming firm Nazara Technologies posted a strong growth in the fourth quarter of FY25. The firm reported a 95% rise in operating revenue to Rs 520 crore, while net profit surged to Rs 4 crore from Rs 18 lakh in the year-ago period. Awfis net profit rises nine-fold in Q4, revenue up 46% Sumit Lakhani, CEO, Awfis Office space solutions provider Awfis recorded a 46% rise in operating revenue to Rs 339 crore for the March quarter, fueled by greater enterprise contributions, allied services, and better efficiency. Net profit rose ninefold to Rs 11.3 crore. Other Top Stories By Our Reporters (L-R) Harsh Jain, Neeraj Singh, Lalit Keshre and Ishan Bansal, cofounders, Groww Groww files draft papers for IPO, eyes $700 million to $1 billion listing: Online investment platform Groww has submitted its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to launch an initial public offering (IPO), according to a public notice on May 25. Financial services players use agentic AI to automate workflows: The BFSI sector, including players like HDFC Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), and Wells Fargo, is planning to leverage agentic AI to automate workflows intelligently. Global Picks We Are Reading ■ How I shorted $TRUMP coin (and got to have dinner with the President) (The Verge) ■ Here are the nuclear fission startups backed by Big Tech (TechCrunch) ■ The real cost of AI is being paid in deserts far from Silicon Valley (Rest of World) Updated On May 27, 2025, 07:23 AM IST
Economic Times
20-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Shiprocket hits IPO runway; Tata ups iPhone ante
Happy Tuesday! Shiprocket is all set to start the process for listing in India, sources told ET. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch. Also in the letter: ■ ETTech Done Deals ■ HCLTech's new GCC head■ Uber joins ONDC for B2B foray Shiprocket set to file for Rs 2,000-2,500 crore IPO via Sebi's confidential route Saahil Goel, CEO, Shiprocket Shiprocket is set to file a confidential draft prospectus with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in the next couple of days for its initial public offering (IPO), according to sources familiar with the matter. Driving the news: Backed by Zomato and Temasek, Shiprocket plans to raise Rs 2,000–2,500 crore through its market debut, including a fresh issue of Rs 1,000–1,200 crore. The company has appointed Axis Capital, Kotak Mahindra Capital, JM Financial and Bank of America as advisors for the IPO. Pre-IPO finances: Shiprocket became cash-flow positive in FY25, an investor told us. This marks a turnaround from FY24, when its loss widened to Rs 595 crore from Rs 341 crore the previous year. This was mainly due to the financial impact of integrating several acquisitions made in FY23. However, operating revenue rose 21% to Rs 1,316 crore in FY24. About Shiprocket: Founded in 2012, the company provides shipping solutions to direct-to-consumer (D2C) brands and small sellers, who account for 70-80% of its revenue.A source added that ahead of its IPO, Shiprocket is doubling down on three core growth areas: payments, cross-border logistics, and quick commerce. Also Read: Shiprocket converts to public company in run-up to IPO Tatas' Hosur plant starts assembling Apple's iPhones Tata Electronics has started assembling iPhone models at its new unit within the Hosur manufacturing facility, people aware of the development told us. Driving the news: The company is assembling the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16e across two dedicated assembly lines, with plans to expand to at least four. Each end-to-end assembly line can employ up to 2,500 workers. Once fully operational, the Hosur plant is expected to surpass the scale of Tata's Wistron facility. Tell me more: The move marks a significant step for Apple as it diversifies its manufacturing footprint beyond China. US president Donald Trump recently told CEO Tim Cook that he didn't want the iPhone maker 'building in India.' 'As Apple looks to deepen its footprint in India and reduce its reliance on China, the presence of two strong, mature suppliers will be instrumental in enabling that growth, said Prabhu Ram, vice president, industry research group, at CyberMedia Research. Output boost: Tata Electronics is also ramping up production of iPhone enclosures at Hosur. As ET reported on May 12, the company plans to double its capacity of around 50,000 enclosures. Also Read: Apple partner Hon Hai injects $1.5 billion into India unit Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees. The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship opportunities. ETtech Done Deals: Euler, Curebay, Cloudsek raise fresh capital Saurav Kumar, founder, Euler Motors Euler raises Rs 638 crore: Electric commercial vehicle maker Euler Motors raised Rs 638 crore in a new funding round led by Hero MotoCorp. This marks the legacy two-wheeler giant's entry into the electric three- and four-wheeler space. Euler will use the funds to expand its nationwide sales and service network and ramp up new product development. CureBay raises $21 million: Odisha-based hybrid healthcare platform CureBay raised $21 million in fresh funding led by Bertelsmann India Investments. British International Investment (BII) and existing investor Elevar Equity also participated in the funding round. The company will use the funds to bolster its in-house, proprietary tech stack, expand its footprint, and increase recruitment. Cloudsek raises $19 million: Predictive cybersecurity firm Cloudsek raised $19 million in a funding round led by Tenacity Ventures and Commvault. Inflexor Ventures, MassMutual Ventures, and Prana Ventures also joined the round. Other Top Stories By Our Reporters UIDAI opens up non-personal Aadhaar data for public good: The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) will make non-personal Aadhaar dashboard data public, which will provide insights into the biometric ID's usage and adoption across the country. H-1B visas decline due to strict rules, higher costs: H-1B visa registrations for FY26 declined 26.5% compared to FY25 at 358,737. The number of selected registrations stood at 120,141, the lowest in the last five years, amid the Trump administration's stringent visa regime and increased costs. HCLTech appoints Kiran Cherukuri as global head of GCC practice: Cherukuri will be responsible for scaling HCLTech's global capability centre (GCC) practice by bringing focused offerings and corporate functions capabilities. Uber to offer logistics services through ONDC network: Uber is set to roll out B2B logistics services through the government-backed Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) network, offering businesses on-demand delivery services. Global Picks We Are Reading ■ Pharma giant Regeneron to buy 23andMe and its customers' data for $256M (TechCrunch) ■ We 3D-printed Luigi Mangione's ghost gun. It was entirely legal (Wired) ■ Why AI advancement doesn't have to come at the expense of marginalised workers (Rest of World) Updated On May 20, 2025, 07:10 AM IST
Economic Times
16-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
UPI extras miss mark; Amazon streamlines India ops
Happy Friday! Most new features on United Payments Interface (UPI) have struggled to gain meaningful traction over the years. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch. Also in the letter: ■ PB Fintech profit triples■ GIC seeks CCI nod for Groww stake■ Uptick in SaaS M&A deals UPI Lite and wallet-based pay off to a slow start as UPI payments climb In recent years, the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has rolled out several new features—UPI Lite, wallet-based payments, recurring payments via UPI, UPI through RuPay credit cards, and UPI Circle. Yet, most have seen limited adoption. Driving the news: According to multiple sources, features like UPI Lite, wallet-based UPI payments, and RuPay card usage on UPI are seeing just 80-150 million monthly transactions. While not insignificant, these numbers appear modest given UPI's massive scale. Going deeper: Industry insiders cite several challenges hindering adoption: Fintechs such as PhonePe, Google Pay, and Paytm have done little to promote these features. The lack of financial incentives means big players primarily use UPI to drive traffic to their revenue-generating products. Banks are reluctant to invest in building and maintaining tools that show weak traction. Fresh challenges: Despite UPI's runaway success, NPCI must now prove its innovation muscle. Features like UPI Lite and wallet-based payments were designed to ease pressure on core banking systems. Their failure to scale undermines that goal and the NPCI's ambition to evolve the platform. Also Read: Behind UPI-first digital payment apps' latest plan to revamp their mobile wallet operations Amazon India's board clears logistics arm & marketplace biz merger Amazon Transportation Services (ATS), the logistics arm of American ecommerce giant in India, is merging with Amazon Seller Services, the primary marketplace unit in the country. Driving the news: The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) has granted interim approval for the merger. In its filings with the NCLT, Amazon stated that the move aims to: Reduce legal and regulatory compliance requirements Enable more efficient management of infrastructure and resources across both companies. For context: ATS was launched in 2013 as an in-house logistics service for Amazon's ecommerce marketplace in India. The unit still generates more than 95% of its revenue from Amazon. In 2023, ATS began offering its services to third-party clients as well. Rival watch: Flipkart operates its own logistics arm, Ekart Logistics. Meesho, backed by SoftBank, launched Valmo last year to serve its sellers. Financial snapshot: ATS reported a 7.6% YoY rise in operating revenue for FY24 to Rs 4,889 crore. Amazon Seller Services reported Rs 25,406 crore in operating revenue during FY24, up 14%. Also Read: CAIT calls for ban on sale of Pakistani flags, merchandise on Amazon, Flipkart Flipkart helps deliver strong Walmart ad business Ecommerce giant Flipkart has powered a strong quarter for its US-based parent Walmart, contributing to a 20% rise in international advertising revenue for the three months ending April 30. Walmart Q1 results: Walmart International reported net sales of $32.1 billion for the February-April quarter, marking a 7.8% year-on-year increase. Growth in constant currency terms was primarily driven by Flipkart, alongside strong performances from Walmart's businesses in China and Walmex (Mexico and Central America). In numbers: Flipkart Internet, the marketplace arm of Flipkart, earned nearly Rs 5,000 crore from advertising in the financial year ending March 2024, outpacing the Rs 3,734 crore generated from marketplace fees. Also Read: Flipkart may limit its quick commerce expansion to top cities to reduce burn Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees. The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship opportunities. PB Fintech profit triples in Q4, revenue up 38% Alok Bansal and Yashish Dahiya, founders, PB Fintech group PB Fintech posted an 181% year-on-year (YoY) jump in net profit to Rs 171 crore for the quarter that ended March 2025, driven by strong performance across its business verticals. Q4 highlights: Net profit: Rs 171 crore, up 181% YoY Rs 171 crore, up 181% YoY Revenue: Rs 1,508 crore, up 38% YoY Rs 1,508 crore, up 38% YoY Expenses: Rs 1,437 crore, up 29% YoY (from Rs 1,145 crore in Q4 FY24) Tell me more: The robust profit growth was fuelled mainly by steady momentum in the insurance business, alongside strong disbursals in secured loans such as home loans and loans against property, which boosted the lending vertical. The slower pace of expense growth relative to revenue also contributed to the improved bottom line. Insurance business (Policybazaar): Q4 premium collection: Rs 7,030 crore (vs Rs 2,176 crore in Q4 FY24) FY25 total premium processed: Rs 23,486 crore Also Read: PB Healthcare secures $218 million from General Catalyst, PB Fintech, others GIC seeks CCI nod for Groww stake ahead of IPO Lalit Keshre, CEO, Groww Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC has sought the Competition Commission of India's (CCI) nod to acquire a 2.14% stake in wealthtech startup Groww through its affiliate Viggo Investment. Why it matters: The move is part of Groww's $200 million pre-IPO funding at a 6.5 billion valuation, as reported by ET on March 26. As we reported earlier, this will nearly double its 2021 private market valuation. The big picture: Groww, now India's largest stockbroker by active clients, recently shifted its domicile to India and is gearing up to file its IPO papers soon. Also Read: Groww gets CCI approval for bonus shares, founders relinquish extra voting rights Other Top Stories By Our Reporters Trump wants Apple to stop moving iPhone production to India: President Donald Trump asked Tim Cook to halt production in India and move back to the US, as the iPhone maker plans to diversify its manufacturing beyond China. SaaS sees an uptick in mergers, buyouts as AI flips the script: As smaller software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies struggle to raise funds and scale operations amid the AI boom, M&A deals increased 19% sequentially and 31% annually in the March quarter. New-age ice cream brand Hocco raises $10 million: The latest funding round was co-led by the Chona family office and Sauce VC, and funds were earmarked for expansion, capex, innovation, marketing, and more. Global Picks We Are Reading ■ US tech visa applications are being put through the ringer (Wired) ■ AI therapy is a surveillance machine in a police state (The Verge) ■ Apple finally launches next-gen 'CarPlay Ultra' software, starting with Aston Martin (TechCrunch) Updated On May 16, 2025, 07:14 AM IST
