OfBusiness raises💰, Meesho bets big🤳🏻, Blinkit delivers⏳
OfBusiness raises $325 mn, Meesho bets big on live commerce, Blinkit suspends delivery in some areas, Funding Deals & more.
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OfBusiness raises $325 mn in fourth major fundraise this year💰
Raw material procurement and business financing platform, OfBusiness, has raised $325 million in its fourth major equity fundraise this year.
The Series G round was led by Alpha Wave Ventures II (formerly known as Falcon Edge Capital), Tiger Global Management and Softbank Vision Fund 2, taking the overall valuation of the company to about $5 billion.
The venture was co-founded by eight people. Between them, they have collective work experience across companies like McKinsey, Religare, Royal Bank of Scotland, ITC and Snapdeal.
The company had raised $160 million in July led by Softbank Vision Fund 2, marking its entry into the growing list of Indian unicorn club at a valuation of $1.5 billion. The industrial goods seller quickly doubled its valuation to $3 billion in September, after it raised $207 million, led by Tiger Global.
Launched six years ago, OfBusiness is a technology-enabled platform that facilitates raw material procurement and credit in the B2B markets with a focus on the manufacturing and infrastructure sectors.
Meesho bets big on live commerce with new streaming platform🤳🏻
Social commerce platform Meesho is building a live streaming platform, sources told ET, as it looks to harness a lucrative new trend in ecommerce called live commerce. The service will be offered to sellers on the platform for a charge.
What is live commerce? Pioneered by the Chinese company Taobao, live commerce entails linking up an online live stream broadcast with an ecommerce store to allow viewers to watch and shop at the same time. The model proved a reliable digital tool for boosting customer engagement and sales in China.
In 2020, the first 30 minutes of Alibaba’s Singles’ Day presales campaign on Taobao Live generated $7.5 billion in total transaction value, according to a McKinsey report.
This is the model that Meesho—and others—are looking to replicate in India.
The value of China’s live commerce market is expected to hit $423 billion by 2022, up from $171 billion in 2020.
Live commerce has had little success in India until now, but the entry of well-funded players may signal a new chapter.
Hot Shorts⚡
Online used cars retailer Cars24 has closed a $400-million funding round led by returning investor Alpha Wave Global, valuing the platform at $3.3 billion.
B2B ecommerce and supply chain enablement platform Bizongo has raised $110 million in a Series D round led by New York-based Tiger Global Management.
E-commerce and last-mile logistics and support startup Yodacart has raised $225,000 in a Pre-Seed funding round led by Ajith Daniel, a New York-based angel investor.
D2C tea brand Esah Tea has raised Rs 3 crore in its pre-series A round from NEDFI Venture Capital.
Blinkit suspends delivery in areas that it cannot service in 10 minutes🕙
Blinkit, the quick commerce startup formerly known as Grofers, has suspended deliveries in areas that it cannot service in 10 minutes, cofounder Albinder Dhindsa said on Monday.
The decision comes soon after the company rebranded itself from Grofers to Blinkit amid increasing competition in the quick commerce space. Well-funded startups like Mumbai-based Zepto, Swiggy’s Instamart and Google-backed Dunzo are all promising to deliver groceries and other essentials in 10-20 minutes. Zepto’s USP is 10-minute delivery.
The rebranding, like that of Facebook in late October, reflected a change of focus for the company as it looks to grab a share of India’s rapidly growing quick commerce market.
According to a report by Redseer, India’s quick commerce market will be worth an estimated $300 million this calendar year and grow to $5 billion by 2025.
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