RateGain to buy travel data exchange company Adara

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January 3, 2023

RateGain, a global provider of SaaS solutions for the travel and hospitality industry, announced that it had signed a definitive agreement to acquire the data exchange platform Adara through an asset purchase agreement.

According to the official announcement, this acquisition would strengthen and reinforce RateGain’s position with commercial teams in hotel chains, airlines, and car rental firms, in addition to providing access to a specific market of more than 50+ destination marketing organisations in the US.

According to BSE filings, the deal’s amount is expected to be around Rs 134 crore.

“Adara’s key differentiator is its access to permissioned travel-intent data from the world’s top travel and hospitality players as well as destination marketing organisations, and relying less on traditional methods of tracking consumer intent,” said Bhanu Chopra, Chairman and Founder, RateGain.

Adara, which Charles Mi founded in San Francisco in2009, is now a partner in data collection and management for blue-chip companies in the travel and hospitality industries by offering predictive intelligence for the best consumer engagement.

To power digital marketing, programmatic advertising, campaign measurement, CRM, and retention, the company uses AI to combine the strength of global data consortiums with more than 24 billion data elements across 130 countries. The company also helps its customers build better connections to increase consumer engagement and profitability.

“Bhanu’s vision to build an end-to-end platform that can help organisations maximise revenue aligns with what Adara believes in, and the integration of RateGain and Adara will further this to create a unique value proposition that the industry needs as more and more travelers adopt digital channels to research, plan, and book travel,” said Charles Mi, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Adara.

Together, Adara and RateGain will develop the most comprehensive travel platform, handling close to 30 billion data points, processing over 200 billion ARI updates, and collaborating with 700+ partners in over 100+ countries.

In more than 100 countries, RateGain works with 2,800+ customers and 700+ partners to increase revenue generation through acquisition, retention, and wallet share expansion.

Following its late 2021 listing on stock exchanges, the company, which counts Nomura India Investment, Kuwait Investment Authority, Goldman Sachs Funds, Avataar Holdings, and TA Associates among its investors, raised nearly Rs 600 crore.

Germany reports record employment in 2022

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January 3, 2023

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According to provisional figures published by the Federal Statistical Office (Destatis), a record 45.6 million persons were employed in Germany in 2022, an increase of 1.3% from the previous year.

In the largest economy in Europe, 34.3 million people were employed in the service industry alone. According to data cited by the Xinhua news agency, nearly all job growth occurred there in 2022, growing at a 1.6% annual rate.

Germany’s workforce expanded due to the immigration of foreign workers and the active participation of the domestic population. The labour market’s dampening effects of the demographic shift were “more than offset,” according to Destatis.

Germany has been experiencing a persistent lack of skilled workers, largely due to the demographic effects of an aging population. In mid-2022, the country’s economy was lacking more than half a million skilled workers on an annual average, according to the German Economic Institute (IW).

“When my generation, the boomer generation, retires, it really creates a problem,” Saskia Esken, party co-leader of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democratic Party (SPD), said last week. “That’s why we have to increase immigration — and make sure that integration succeeds.”

According to a recent report by the Nuremberg-based Institute for Employment Research (IAB), the lack of skilled labour in Germany will reach seven million by 2035 without immigration and rising labour force participation rates.

In addition to a positive immigration balance and higher labor force participation rates, “it will also be important for the birth rate to rise in the coming years to stabilize the labor force potential in the long term beyond 2035,” the IAB said.

The German government decided to lower the income requirements for the Blue Card, which is necessary for work migration, to bring in more international workers. Additionally, an “opportunity card” for those with high potential will be introduced, and the asylum procedures will be streamlined.

ShareChat’s revenue increase 4.3 times for FY22

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January 2, 2023

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According to regulatory filings, Mohalla Tech, the parent company of the short video entertainment app Moj and the vernacular social media platform ShareChat, reported a 4.3X increase in operating revenue to Rs 347 crore during the last fiscal year compared to Rs 80.4 crore in FY21.

Entrackr reported that it experienced yearly losses of Rs 2,988 crore in FY22 compared to Rs 1,324 crore in FY21. During the last fiscal year, its cash outflows from operations increased 2.5X to Rs 2,676 crore.

Its platform-based advertisement revenue increased by 2.8X to Rs 212.2 crore in FY22 from Rs 77 crore in FY21. In-app purchases for its chatrooms, known as “ShareChat Coin,” increased 35X to Rs 120.5 crore in the last fiscal year from only Rs 3.44 crore in FY21.

Jeet11, a skill-based game for real money, reported that its gaming platform generated Rs 14.24 crore in revenue in FY22. Mohalla Tech shut down Jeet11 in December last year, and 5% of its employees were laid off.

Its largest cost component, business development expenses, increased by 72.5% to Rs 1,143 crore in FY22 from Rs 662.6 crore in FY21. During the fiscal year, employee benefits expenses surged 2.8X to Rs 505 crore. Employee share-based payments totaling Rs. 73.83 crores were included in this expense (a non-cash expense).

In FY22, the cost of content development and legal expenses increased by 8.6 and 6.1 times, respectively, to Rs 422 crore and Rs 70 crore. Additionally, ShareChat spent Rs 78.67 crore on platform service fees, communications, distributor support, analytics, and other associated expenses. Finally, compared to FY21, its overall cost increased 2.4X to Rs 3,407 crores from Rs 1,420 crore. At the end of FY22, its outstanding losses increased by more than 80% to Rs 2,583 crore.

Indian auto industry achieves highest ever annual sales in 2022

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January 2, 2023

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The sale of domestic passenger vehicles in India reached an all-time high last year. In 2022, the country sold 3.793 million, or 37.93 lakh units, a 23.1% increase over the previous year. The largest increase in annual sales was reported by major four-wheeler companies Tata Motors (58.2%), Kia India (40.2%), and Toyota Kirloskar Motor (22.6%).

However, the fastest-growing of the top companies was Skoda Auto Volkswagen India, with a growth of 123.3%. Maruti Suzuki maintained its dominance of the Indian auto industry in 2022, selling 15.8 lakh vehicles there compared to the 13.68 lakhs it sold in 2021, a 15.4% increase year over year.

The Indian auto industry sold over 2.28 lakh vehicles in December 2022 alone, a 3.6% increase from the 2.20 lakh units sold in the same month in 2021. The rise in sales figures reveals the rising demand for automobiles in India and the slightly better semiconductor chip situation.

In 2022, the country witnessed the introduction of many high-selling new cars, including some significant debuts like the Mahindra Scorpio-N, Maruti Suzuki Grand Vitara, Toyota Hyryder, Toyota Innova Hycross, and so on. This year will likely introduce more new and exciting cars due to the upcoming Auto Expo 2023.

InCred Capital buys Orowealth to enter into retail wealth-tech with launch of InCred Money

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January 2, 2023

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By launching “InCred Money,” InCred Capital plans to enter the retail wealth-tech industry. According to an announcement from the company, InCred Money has officially launched with the all-cash acquisition of Orowealth.

With a strong technology platform and a skilled team, the acquisition gives InCred Money assets under management (AuM) of more than ₹1,100 cr. According to the statement, the co-founder of Orowealth, Vijay Kuppa, will now serve as the CEO of InCred Money.

“This will be InCred Capital’s second pillar in the fast-growing Indian wealth market, following its previous success in the Ultra / High Net Worth segment under the InCred Wealth brand,” the company added.

InCred Money will have access to the whole range of product capabilities, according to the InCred Group. According to the company, InCred Money will also develop a B2B2C offering by utilizing technology to effectively incorporate a wide network of Independent Financial Advisors (IFA) across the country, enabling them to access class-leading products and solutions for the advantage of their end customers.

Orowealth is a retail-focused digital investment platform that offers access to specialized, low-cost investment opportunities in addition to more traditional investment avenues like mutual funds and fixed deposits.

Bhupinder Singh, Founder and Group CEO of InCred Group, said, “In the next decade, the democratization of investment opportunities covering the Mass Affluent and Retail segments will be driven by digital platforms that unlock access to non-traditional assets for investors as well as their advisors. This will help to create a new market worth tens of billions in AUM. With the launch of the InCred Money platform, we are committed to offering best-in-class products to these rapidly evolving customer segments in keeping with our vision to meet the financial needs of every Indian family.”

Byju’s plans to open new tuition centres

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December 30, 2022

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Byju’s, the edtech unicorn, will be opening more physical tuition centres and is “working very hard” to become profitable by 2023, according to co-founder and CEO Byju Ravindran in a year-end email to employees. While he did not specify a timeline, he had specified a target of March in October.

The Tiger Global-backed company saw its losses increase to ₹4,589 crores in FY21 from ₹232 crores the previous year. The leading edtech firm has not yet submitted its FY22 financial reports to the Registrar of Companies.

Byju’s has switched its strategy from exponential expansion to sustainable growth to achieve its profitability goal, which it had not planned before 2024. “Macroeconomic changes of 2022 meant we had to embark on the path to profitability this year itself,” said Ravindran. According to a report from Bloomberg, the company violated the restrictions for its $1.2 billion overseas term loan B by failing to submit the FY22 results by September.

Byju’s had to lay off almost 2,500 employees across its product, content, media, and technology teams due to the changes in strategy. Cost-cutting measures might improve unit economics and lay the groundwork for the company’s IPO.

“The prevailing macroeconomic conditions and the integration of our acquired companies made it (layoffs) inevitable. We shifted our model towards inside sales, which is a result of Byju’s strong brand visibility and deep customer trust,” said Raveendran.

Byju’s recently raised $250 million from existing investors through a rights issue to boost growth. Through a loan from its fully-owned subsidiary Aakash Educational Services, it received ₹300 crores. In 2022 alone, it opened more than 300 physical centres.

Majority of employers in manufacturing sector plan to hire in Q4: Report

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December 28, 2022

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In response to rising domestic demand, most manufacturing companies plan to expand their workforce over the next three months.

According to a TeamLease, “Employment Outlook Report” for the fourth quarter released on Tuesday, large-scale enterprises (69%) are mainly contributing to the spike in hiring, followed by medium-sized (44%) and small-sized (39%) companies.

The findings are based on a survey of 301 manufacturing companies across 14 Indian cities.

More than 60% of firms in the manufacturing sector want to recruit and expand their available resources.

It stated that from 65% in the third quarter, the objective to hire for the manufacturing and services sectors increased to 68% in the third quarter.

“The global employment rate has increased considerably post the last COVID-19 wave and is poised to grow stronger in the coming quarters. With domestic demand increasing, despite stringent external conditions, the manufacturing industry is projected to witness all-encompassing growth. Moreover, the government’s agenda to drive ‘Make in India’ and the introduction of reforms to boost domestic manufacturing will enable India to become a more attractive destination for investments, thereby impacting employment positively,” TeamLease Services Chief Business Officer Mahesh Bhatt said.

Metro and Tier I cities (94%) have higher hiring intentions than Tier II cities (73%), Tier III cities (43%), and the rural sector (23%).

Mumbai (97%), Bengaluru (94%), Chennai (89%), Delhi (84%), and Pune (73%) are the cities with the most intent to hire, according to the report.

First 10 hotels in the world to attain LEED Zero Carbon Certification are ITC hotels

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December 27, 2022

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The ITC Hotels Group’s 10 properties have attained Net Zero Carbon Status by earning the coveted “LEED Zero Carbon Certification” from the USGBC [United States Green Building Council], paving the way for the international hospitality industry.

This achievement shows ITC Hotels’ dedication to sustainable development and responsible luxury. According to USGBC, ITC Hotels is already the global hotel chain with the greatest number of LEED Platinum-certified properties.

Anil Chadha, divisional chief executive of ITC Hotels, said, “Responsible Luxury is our guiding ethos at ITC Hotels. We endeavour to create planet positive experiences. The Net Zero project aligns with India’s vision of significantly cutting emissions and is a critical driving force behind the transformation of buildings, cities, and communities to continue to sustain future generations.”

The U.S. Green Building Council developed LEED Zero as an add-on to LEED that certifies the accomplishment of net zero goals and indicates market leadership.

The first ten hotels in the world to have achieved this landmark are:

1. ITC Windsor, Bengaluru

2. ITC Grand Chola, Chennai

3. ITC Gardenia, Bengaluru

4. Welcomhotel Bengaluru

5. Welcomhotel Guntur

6. Welcomhotel Chennai

7. ITC Mughal, Agra

8. Welcomhotel Coimbatore

9. Welcomhotel Sheraton New Delhi.

10. ITC Grand Central, Mumbai

Agritech startup Ecozen bags $10mn from Nuveen Global Fund

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December 27, 2022

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Ecozen, an agritech startup, raised $10 million from Nuveen Global Fund. This second tranche is funding its planned Rs 200 crore Series C funding.

To raise Rs 82.4 crore ($10 million), the board of Ecozen approved a special resolution to issue 1,06,657 Series C2 CCPS at an issue price of Rs 7725.67 each.

Devendra Gupta, Prateek Singhal, and Vivek Pandey, alumni of IIT Kharagpur, founded Ecozen to offer technology-enabled products to improve the farm-to-fork value chain for perishables.

In the first tranche of a projected Series C round, Ecozen raised Rs 54 crore in June of this year. Dare Ventures, the venture capital arm of Coromandel International, took the lead in the new funding round. Existing investors Caspian and Hivos-Triodos Fonds (managed by Triodos Investment Management) also participated through equity.

Ecozen develops climate-smart deep tech solutions to create a sustainable future and core technology stacks, such as energy storage, IoT, and motor controls. Ecozen offers Ecofrost and Ecotron solutions for cold chains and the irrigation industry, using these technology stacks to improve the income of over 100,000 farmers and enable the production of over one billion units of clean energy (kWh).

Eduvanz receives $12.6mn funding from Rethink Education, others

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December 27, 2022

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Eduvanz, a fintech startup based in Mumbai, has raised $12.6 million (about Rs 104.5 crore) from new and existing investors. This year’s first round of equity funding for the company.

According to a report from Entrackr, the board of Eduvanz has approved a special resolution to allot 68,373 Series B1 CCPS at Rs 15,283.71 per share to raise Rs 104.5 crore.

Rethink Education, a venture capital firm that backs education technology startups, sponsored the equity round for the education-focused lending tech startup. The funding round also included participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital, Juvo Ventures, and Unitus Ventures.

Eduvanz raised Rs 50 crore in debt funding in April from investors MAS, Vivriti, Oxyzo, and Unifi AIF.

The most recent funds were acquired in an extended Series B round. According to Tracxn, the fintech company has previously raised a total of $24.7 million.

Varun Chopra, Raheel Shah, and Atul Sashittal founded Eduvanz, an online marketplace for education loans, in 2016. It offers education loans with 0% rates, allowing students to study now and pay later in easy monthly installments.

Also, Eduvanz offers customizable loan options that serve the financial needs of K–12 programs, online skill-development courses, and professional courses.

According to Tracxn, Eduvanz is currently ranked first among 34 active competitors, including Credenc, Propelld, Avanse, and Auxilo.

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