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Thursday / November 21. 2024
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The funds will be utilised to drive Vegrow’s reach across India and fortify its global network.

Vegrow, a B2B fruit marketplace, has raised $46 million in primary and secondary funding. The new funding round was led by GIC, Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund. The round saw participation from existing investor Prosus Ventures, and continued support from Matrix Partners India, Elevation Capital, and Lightspeed. The funds will be utilised to drive Vegrow’s reach across India and fortify its global network, mentioned the company.

Prosus Ventures believes Vegrow operates in an attractive sector and is creating a superior demand and supply experience. The founding team has demonstrated strong execution capabilities and a focused approach to profitability. Buoyed by the future growth outlook, Prosus Ventures has increased its ownership in the company. It looks forward to the next phase of growth.

Vegrow has established a presence in the fruits segment in India, a large, unorganised market poised for tech-led disruption due to its fragmented and localised operational structure. It is characterized by the involvement of multiple intermediaries facilitating transactions. Vegrow’s advantage is the depth of its multi-channel demand stack and its use of technology for demand-supply matchmaking.

The company said that it maximises farmers’ income by accurately grading produce and efficiently matching it with the most suitable demand channel. This creates a virtuous cycle, attracting more farmers through competitive pricing as well as more buyers who seek consistency in both price and quality.

Praneeth Kumar, Co-founder, Vegrow said, “The company’s strategy marks a significant advancement in the efficiency and reliability of the fruit ecosystem. Over the past year, Vegrow has experienced a remarkable fivefold increase in revenue and achieved operational profitability.”

“At Vegrow, we distinguish ourselves from conventional operations, by creating an organizational ethos centered on agility and experimentation. Through the extensive utilization of data and technology, we provide valuable insights and optimize supply chain challenges, such as reducing perishable inventory wastage to only one-fourth of industry average, and consistently achieving industry-leading profit margins,” said Vegrow Co-founder, Mrudhukar Batchu.

The funds will be utilised to drive

The new funding will be used for expanding our product range, manufacturing capacity and boosting exports.

Climate-smart deeptech startup Ecozen announced that it has raised Rs 54 crore of additional funding as the first tranche of a planned Rs 200 crore Series C round. The new funding round was led by Dare Ventures, the venture capital arm of Coromandel International, with participation from existing investors Caspian and Hivos-Triodos Fonds (managed by Triodos Investment Management) through equity. Northern Arc, UC Inclusive Credit, Maanaveeya, and Samunnati also participated with debt funding. Early investors in Ecozen include IFA and Omnivore.

Ecozen develops climate-smart deeptech solutions and core technology stacks to deliver a sustainable future, including motor controls, IoT, and energy storage. Applying these technology stacks to the agricultural sector, Ecozen has revolutionized cold chains (Ecofrost) and the irrigation industry (Ecotron), substantially improving the income of 100,000+ farmers and enabling the generation of over 1Bn units of clean energy(kWh).

Ecozen sees a significant opportunity in applying its technology stacks and introducing climate-smart solutions for sectors beyond agriculture, notably electric vehicles. The company expects the market size for its innovative technology stacks in India will grow to USD 25 billion by 2025. In the coming years, Ecozen will launch multiple products which build on its deeptech expertise in thermal energy storage, motor controls, IoT, and analytics.

Commenting on this latest fundraise, Devendra Gupta, CEO and Co-Founder of Ecozen, said, “We are thrilled to partner with Dare Ventures and other new and existing investors, as we accelerate our growth and bring climate-smart deeptech solutions to new sectors of the economy. The new funding will be used for expanding our product range, manufacturing capacity and boosting exports. Expanding beyond India and beyond agriculture will enable us to expand our market potential multifold and grow exponentially while ensuring sustainability.”

Commenting on their investment, Sameer Goel, Director, Dare Ventures Ltd. and Managing Director, Coromandel International Limited, said, “We are focused on businesses with positive and long term on the ground impact and Ecozen through its innovative deep tech products is well aligned with our vision. With a keen focus on sustainability, we believe their core technology stack will significantly impact sectors beyond agriculture as well.”

The new funding will be used for