ETtech Deals Digest: PharmEasy, Cred raise funds this week

Online pharmacy PharmEasy and credit card repayment platform Cred were among the startups that raised funds this week with a significant bump up in their valuations.

Meanwhile, MyGlamm parent Good Glamm Group acquired new-age media startup ScoopWhoop Media in an all-cash deal.

PharmEasy closes pre-IPO funding round
PharmEasy closed a funding round worth nearly $350 million ahead of filing its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) before an Initial Public Offering (IPO), according to regulatory documents sourced by ET and people briefed on the matter.

The company raised around $204 million in primary funding from Singapore’s Amansa Capital,Blackstone-backed hedge fund ApaH Capital, US hedge fund Janus Henderson, OrbiMed, Steadview Capital, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund ADQ, hedge fund Neuberger Berman and London’s Sanne Group, the documents showed.

PharmEasy parent API Holdings also closed a $130-$140 million secondary share sale, sources told us. In a secondary share sale, existing investors sell their shares to new investors and the money does not flow into the company coffers.

Fundraising spree: This is the third major financing round that the company has closed, taking the total to $1 billion including secondary funding in the calendar year so far, amid record amounts of capital being pumped into startups leading the digital economy.

Cred valuation nearly doubles after funding
Cred picked up $251 million in a Series E funding round co-led by Tiger Global and Falcon Edge at a valuation of $4.01 billion, underscoring the unabating interest that Indian fintech is garnering from investors.

The fundraising nearly doubles the Bengaluru-based startup’s valuation from $2.2 billion in April when the company raised $215 million. It was valued at $800 million less than a year ago, when it raised $80 million in November 2020. The latest round saw two new investors — Marshall Wace and Steadfast Venture Capital — join the cap table of the fintech startup. Existing investors DST Global, Insight Partners, Coatue and Sofina also participated in the fundraising.


CredAble bags $30 million
CredAble, a fintech startup focused on supply chain financing, bagged $30 million in its Series B funding round co-led by Plutus Management LLP and existing investor Oaks Asset Management.

The funding comes amid growing investor interest in fintech companies, with the sector attracting the most capital in the year to date.

The Mumbai-based company will use the funds to launch its new product and to strengthen its tech platform, said cofounder and chief executive Nirav Choksi.

Also Read: Indian startups raise $10 billion in a quarter for the first time, report says

SaaS Labs lands $17 million in maiden funding round
SaaS Labs, a cloud-based automation platform, has raised $17 million from Base 10 Partners and Eight Roads Ventures in its maiden funding round. The capital will be used to expand the customer base and hire talent, as well as for product development and improving service delivery, the company said.

Other key deals

■ Regulatory technology startup IDfy secured about $11 million in its Series D round of funding led by TransUnion and Blume Ventures.

■ FarMart, a software-as-a-service-led food supply platform, raised $10 million in a funding round led by Matrix Partners India.

■ Stripe, one of the world's most valued fintech companies, acquired Bengaluru-based provider of payments reconciliation software Recko, marking its first acquisition in India.