HDFC Bank to invest ₹3cr to acquire stake in IDRCL

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March 29, 2022

HDFC Bank, India’s largest private sector bank by assets, plans to invest Rs 3 crore in the first tranche to acquire a stake in the India Debt Resolution Company Limited (“IDRCL”) by an equity securities subscription. In total, HDFC Bank plans to invest Rs 7.50 crore in IDRCL to acquire a 15% share.

On March 28, HDFC Bank and IDRCL inked an agreement, with the first tranche expected to be completed by March 31, 2022.

In its regulatory filing, HDFC Bank said, “equity investment will be done in tranches and the first tranche of equity investment of ₹3 crore is expected to be completed by March 31, 2022. Subsequent tranches of equity investment will be made as and when determined by the Board of Directors of IDRCL.”

IDRCL was founded on September 3, 2021, to operate as a debt management company and provide debt management, operational management, and consultation services regarding debt resolution for asset reconstruction companies, investment trusts, and other securities portfolios.

Hyderabad-based SuperK raises $5.5mn led by 021 Capital, others

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March 29, 2022

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SuperK, a Hyderabad-based tech-enabled franchised grocery retailer for small towns, announced that it had raised $5.5 million in a pre-series A round led by Binny Bansal’s 021 Capital with other investors.

The participating investors include Curefoods founder Ankit Nagori, Razorpay founders MarsShot Ventures, Blume Founders Fund, xto10x co-founder & CEO Saikiran Krishnamurthy, Ula founder & CEO Nipun Mehra, and public market investor Ashish Kacholia (Public market investor) in addition to existing investors.

SuperK plans to use the funds to expand its business, establish a strong team and brand, and improve its technological and supply chain infrastructure, according to the company.

According to SuperK co-founders Neeraj Menta and Anil Thontepu, BITS Pilani batchmates, the startup aims to swiftly scale and reach over 200 stores across more than 120 towns in Andhra Pradesh by the end of next year.

Over the last year, SuperK has co-created close to 50 stores in 20 towns across Andhra Pradesh’s Kadapa and Anantapur districts, serving over one lakh families.

It also stated that it plans to hire in sales and marketing, technology and product development, and analytics and data science.

SuperK is a franchised grocery retail chain founded in 2019 to bring modern retail to small towns in India (tier 3 and beyond). Its data-driven and technology-backed processes enable SuperK to operate on an asset-light, franchised supermarket retail chain structure.

Byju’s signs deal with QIA to establish MENA-focused subsidiary in Doha

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March 28, 2022

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Byju’s announced that it has signed an agreement with Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), a sovereign wealth fund, to establish a wholly-owned subsidiary in Doha that would focus on students in the Middle East and North Africa region (MENA).

The platform will establish a research and development center in Doha to develop Arabic-language learning content and products as part of the agreement.

At the 2022 Doha Forum on Saturday and Sunday, Byju Raveendran, Founder and CEO of Byju’s, and Mansoor Al-Mahmoud, CEO of QIA, signed the MoU in the presence of Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the State of Qatar and Chairman of QIA, as well as representatives of Byju’s.

“As we continue to witness accelerated growth in Indian and international markets, we are excited to partner with QIA in this next phase of expansion, development and building new innovations in learning in the MENA region. With a sustained focus on creating life-long value for our learners, this partnership with QIA is a significant step in realizing our vision,” said Raveendran.

“QIA is proud to help enable the development of innovative education technology platforms in the MENA region to inspire children to learn. QIA has a strong focus on investing in leading innovators globally and we want to help drive the creation of new technologies that have a positive impact on society,” said Mansoor Al-Mahmoud.

The announcement also marks a huge drive for the edtech company to expand outside of the United States ahead of its proposed IPO.

INDmoney bags $11mn from Sixteenth Street Capital, Ankur Warikoo, others

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March 28, 2022

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Neo-banking platform INDmoney has raised $11 million from Singapore-based Sixteenth Street Capital, Lenskart founder Peyush Bansal, entrepreneur and influencer Ankur Warikoo, and others.

With this, Tiger Global, Steadview Capital, Dragoneer Investment Group, Sixteenth Street Capital, Peyush Bansal, Ankur Warikoo, and others have invested in INDmoney’s $86 million Series D round.

This round also saw participation from founder Ashish Kashyap and some of the key team members of the company comprising Sunny Bajaj (chief compliance officer and General Counsel), Divyang Bhardwaj (head of marketing), Ankur Goyal (strategy and finance), and Vinay Saraf (head of finance).

Rashmi Kwatra, founder and managing partner of Sixteenth Street Capital, said, “Technology enabled, mobile first financial services providers are reaching and catering to previously unserviced customer segments. This is transforming the financial services landscape in the traditionally underpenetrated markets of South and Southeast Asia. Ashish Kashyap and INDmoney have an extremely vigilant product focus. A product first mentality coupled with an impeccable execution ability is resulting in a delightful consumer experience for millions of people. These customers want to understand and grow their personal finances.”

Peyush Bansal, founder and CEO of Lenskart said: “There are very few product companies in India which are scaling on the back of consumer experience and deep tech vs advertising. I have been using INDmoney, and it is an amazing product with global potential, and that’s what I love about it.”

Warikoo, an active INDMoney user, expressed his delight at the opportunity to become an investor in the company.

Ashish Kashyap, the founder of INDmoney, said: “I am excited about this development for two reasons. First: To partner with the best institutions and individuals that will enable us to fulfill our mission of enabling consumers to better their financial lives via our Neo banking features. Second: it is an excellent validation when your own customers and team members invest behind the mission.”

Godrej Properties to build 33-acre project in Bengaluru

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March 28, 2022

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Godrej Properties has signed a deal to build a 33-acre land parcel in South Bengaluru’s Bannerghatta Road. According to a BSE filing, the agreement is for an outright purchase, with the landowners receiving a 5% area share.

The new project has a developable potential of around 3.4 million sq ft of saleable area and is expected to generate around Rs 2,000 crore in revenue.

Mohit Malhotra, MD & CEO of the company, said, “This will further expand our presence in South Bengaluru and fits with our strategy of deepening our presence in key micro markets across India’s leading cities.”

During the quarter ending December 31, 2020, the company’s net consolidated profit increased by 171%. In Q3 FY22, it declared a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 38.95 crore, compared to Rs 14.35 crore in the previous fiscal quarter. In the third quarter of FY22, the company’s net consolidated income was Rs 466.91 crore.

Tech company offers ₹1.5 crore bonuses to retain key talent

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March 26, 2022

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According to people familiar with the situation, Apple Inc. is giving a small number of engineers another round of special stock bonuses as part of an unusual push to retain key talent.

The bonuses were given to a select group of employees in the iPhone maker’s software and hardware engineering departments recently, according to the people who asked not to be identified because the move isn’t public. The compensation in restricted stock units varied from roughly $100,000 to excess of $200,000 (₹1.5 crores), with some employees referring to them as special retention grants.

The bonuses are designed to keep employees from leaving by vesting over several years, and they may grow in value over time if Apple’s stock price rises. The stock has gained over 40% in the last year, though it is down somewhat in 2022 due to a broader pullback in tech firms.

The chip design department has seen some attrition. Therefore Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. has ramped up engineering recruitment, intending to put engineers to work on the so-called metaverse.

Senior executives in their respective divisions alerted some engineers of their bonuses. The company has also been awarding customary yearly bonuses and pay adjustments in the weeks leading up to the April 15 vesting deadline. The vesting of employee stock occurs twice a year, in April and October.

Employers have also been under pressure from inflation to increase pay. And Apple is gearing up for a return to work, which some employees anticipate with apprehension. By May, engineers and other corporate employees will work at least three days a week outside of the office.

Indiamart plans to buy a majority stake in Livekeeping

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March 26, 2022

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Indiamart Intermesh, a B2B e-commerce company, announced that it planned to buy a 51% stake in software-as-a-service firm Livekeeping for Rs 45.98 crore in an all-cash deal. According to Indiamart, the acquisition is in keeping with the company’s long-term goal of providing diverse software as a service-based solution for enterprises.

“The company intends to invest up to Rs 45.98 crore approximately in Livekeeping,” Indiamart said in a regulatory filing.

According to the agreement, Indiamart would pay a premium of Rs 51,138 per share for Livekeeping’s 6,843 seed CCPS (Compulsorily Convertible Preference Shares) with a face value of Rs 10 each, aggregating about Rs 35 crore.

It would also purchase 2,147 equity shares in Livekeeping from one of the promoters at the same price for Rs 10.98 crore.

“The final aggregate shareholding of the company, post this investment, in LiveKeeping would be 51.09 per cent on a fully diluted basis,” Indiamart said.

Speaking about the investment, Mr. Dinesh Agarwal, CEO of IndiaMART said “Real time visibility of accounting data like revenue growth, profitability, cash flow management, etc. is a critical yet underserved problem faced by Indian Businesses. Livekeeping has been able to validate an innovative SaaS based solution to this problem. Further, this investment helps complete the IndiaMART ecosystem in the accounting space.”

Adding to this, Mr. Ritesh Kothari, CEO of Livekeeping said “We are excited to partner with IndiaMART in our mission to automate accounting operations. Investment from IndiaMART will enable us to strengthen the product & technology, reach to the higher number of businesses and keep innovating on behalf of our customers. IndiaMART’s understanding of the SMEs and accounting space will play a big role in making this company a huge success.”

Meta signs partnership for 3D ads in a move toward the metaverse

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March 25, 2022

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Through a new partnership with an ecommerce technology firm, Meta Platforms Inc will make it easier for brands to run three-dimensional ads on its Facebook and Instagram social media platforms.

According to a press release issued by VNTANA, the collaboration would allow marketers to submit 3D models of their products to Facebook and Instagram and convert them into ads.

According to VNTANA chief executive Ashley Crowder, the move is a stepping stone into advertising in the metaverse, a futuristic concept of a collection of virtual worlds that can be accessed by devices such as headsets.

Meta has staked its future on its ability to contribute to creating the metaverse, which it estimates will take up to a decade to accomplish.

Meta teamed with augmented reality (AR) companies Modiface and PerfectCorp to make 3D and AR advertising more accessible to beauty and cosmetic brands.

“The metaverse is basically the spatial internet,” Crowder said. “It is a whole world of possibility that starts with having the right 3D models of your products.”

Users who see a 3D ad while surfing on their PC or phone on Facebook or Instagram can interact with an image of a handbag, for example, and move it about to view it from all angles.

“In a way, this offers a glimpse of what you might expect on future devices like AR glasses,” said Chris Barbour, director of augmented reality partnerships at Meta’s Reality Labs unit.

Advertisers would have to restructure 3D files to make them compatible with Meta’s ad systems before VNTANA’s integration. But, according to Crowder, without technical experience working with 3D pictures, marketers can now use VNTANA to effortlessly upload and turn files into ads.

IndiQube plans expansion in tier-2 cities, six key metros

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March 25, 2022

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IndiQube, a flexible workspace operator, wants to extend its managed office business to tier-II cities and six major metros this year, as serviced office demand is likely to rise.

IndiQube now maintains 4.5 million square feet (sqft) of serviced offices in major cities, aiming to more than double that number by 2024.

“We are seeing good response from clients across cities. Over the next two years, we intend to have about 15 tier-II in our portfolio to cater to the emerging requirements from clients,” said Rishi Das, co-founder, IndiQube. “The advent of hybrid working creates an opportunity for employees to live, study and work in the same city.” The firm has signed 100,000 sqft in Coimbatore, its maiden property in a tier II town.

The property has a seating capacity of more than 2,000 units and is customized to fulfill clients’ needs ranging from a 10-seater to a 1,000-seater office space.

IndiQube has locations in Bengaluru, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune, to name a few.

Its clients include Ola, Unacademy, MakeMyTrip, Philips, and EY.

“We have 70,000 seats under management with 85% occupancy. By 2025, the number of seats under management will be 200,000,” Das added.

Large organizations are likely to use flexible spaces to decrease capital expenditure and achieve cost savings while allowing for split teams and de-densification as people return to the office.

“We are also taking over older commercial buildings and refurbishing them. We have already signed 2.5 million sft through refurbishing older buildings, operational 2024-2025,” said Das.

IBM to introduce ‘STEM For Girls’ program in Nagaland

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March 24, 2022

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IBM announced a partnership with Nagaland’s Department of School Education to launch the ‘IBM STEM for Girls’ program in over 250 secondary and higher secondary schools across 15 districts in the northeastern state.

According to IBM, this program will provide more than 12,000 girls in grades 8 to 10 with access to digital fluency, coding skills training, and 21st-century abilities, such as life and career skills.

The partnership is part of a three-year program between IBM and the Nagaland state government to encourage girl children and women participation in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) careers.

As part of the program, nearly 1,400 teachers in participating schools will be empowered to educate and train students in computational thinking, STEM, and agency development for girls. In addition, IBM SkillsBuild (skillsbuild.org), a programme that incorporates online coursework and tools to engage students, will be used by educators.

“With the expansion of our STEM for Girls program in Nagaland, we have increased our footprint to 12 states across India. This is a part of IBM’s ground-breaking commitment to provide 30 million people of all ages worldwide with new skills needed for the jobs of tomorrow by 2030. With these engagements our commitment is to skill students beyond metros and tap into the rich talent pool from various states and cities,” said Sandip Patel, managing director, IBM India.

The IBM Stem for Girls program runs in 12 Indian states, including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Odisha, Assam, Bihar, Uttarakhand, and Nagaland.

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