The startup ecosystem has emerged as a vibrant and dynamic network of entrepreneurs, investors, incubators, accelerators, and supporting stakeholders that foster innovation and economic growth. The deal reflected the scale and momentum at which startups in India had grown. The Government of India has also supported startups in the country, leading to a rise in the number of entrepreneurs in the market, seeing the opportunity to capitalize on their solutions and ideas.

This week, we saw Celcius Logistics, a cold chain marketplace startup, finished its Series A funding by increasing a total amount of Rs 100 crore, led by IvyCap Ventures; and External Threat Landscape Management Company CYFIRMA has raised $5.5 million in a pre-Series B round of funding spearheaded by Indian multinational conglomerate Larsen & Toubro's L&T Innovation Fund and Israeli venture fund OurCrowd. Here is the compilation of top 5 startups that raised million dollar funds this week.

Celcius

Celcius Logistics, a cold chain marketplace startup, finished its Series A funding by increasing a total amount of Rs 100 crore, led by IvyCap Ventures. As part of its Series A funding, the company earlier raised Rs 35 crore, from its existing investors Mumbai Angels, Supply Chain Labs, Endurance Capital, VCats, Huddle, Eaglewings Ventures (EVAN), and others.

Being an asset-light platform, it claims to have of a network fleet of over 4500+ reefer vehicles, 107 cold storage facilities, 7 distribution centers, 100+ hyperlocal riders, and a team of 125 dedicated employees and is operational in 350+ cities across the country. The company aims to utilize the funds for tech innovations to solve the fragmented nature of the cold supply chain and reduce the wastage in perishables thereby building towards a sustainable future.

Ugro Capital

Fintech company Ugro Capital, which focuses on small enterprises, said that it will raise Rs 340 crore in equity capital through a qualified institutional placement and preferential allotment. The business said that its board has approved the preferential allocation of shares worth Rs 240 crore to the Danish investment fund for sustainable development, IFU (Investeringsfonden för Udviklingslande).

With a qualified institutional placement, an additional Rs 101 crore will be raised from long-term investors such insurance companies, AIFs, and other financial institutions. When the money will be raised was not specified. The business has previously signed a legally binding investment agreement with IFU, a government-owned fund in Denmark that provides risk capital to businesses in emerging markets and developing nations.

pi Ventures

The Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) of the Small Industries Development Bank of India (Sidbi), an early-stage venture capital firm, has committed Rs 100 crore (about $12.2 million) to pi Ventures' second fund. The new funding is around 2.5 times what FFS contributed to the original fund. Two weeks prior to the announcement, the Bengaluru-based company which focuses on deep tech and artificial intelligence raised Rs 22 crore from Belgium's Colruyt Group in the same fund.

Manish Singhal, a partner at pi Ventures, would not say exactly how much of the corpus has been replenished by the most recent investment, but he did say that it has almost reached its ultimate close, which is in the area of Rs 675 crore to Rs 750 crore. In January 2022, Pi Ventures stated that it had raised Rs 303.5 crore ($40 million) in its first close, with money coming from family offices, high net worth individuals, entrepreneurs, and venture capital firm Accel. The second fund was introduced in March 2021 with a 750 crore final target corpus.

Barcelona

A revenue-based fundraising platform called GetVantage has provided debt capital of Rs 5 crore to Barcelona, a men's fashion and apparel brand. Barcelona, an Ahmedabad-based company started in 2015 by Jaimin Gupta, has more than 130 outlets as well as a B2B app via which the stock is distributed to clothing retailers at wholesale prices. On the app, the company has more than 7,000 registered clothing shops, and its goal for FY24 is to sign up 1 lakh.

Businesses like ours require a lot of capital, so we're always seeking for working finance that doesn't require ownership or collateral. Fortunately, revenue-based financing is becoming more and more popular in India, which is enabling SMEs like ours to expand rapidly, according to Jaimin Gupta, managing director, Barcelona.

CYFIRMA

External Threat Landscape Management Company CYFIRMA has raised $5.5 million in a pre-Series B round of funding spearheaded by Indian multinational conglomerate Larsen & Toubro's L&T Innovation Fund and Israeli venture fund OurCrowd. The cash will be used to increase product innovation, penetrate new international markets in North America, Europe, and the MENA region, as well as extend its current markets in Southeast Asia, including India, Singapore, and Japan. Additionally, hiring across sectors and brand growth will be done with the money.

OurCrowd has been at the forefront of cybersecurity innovation, with a rich history of making markets and aiding in the creation of some of the most successful startups in the industry, according to Kumar Ritesh, founder and CEO of CYFIRMA. "We recognise the critical role that Israel plays in the cybersecurity market in delivering ground-breaking technology," he added.

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