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Entrepreneur
27-05-2025
- Business
- Entrepreneur
Citykart Raised INR 538cr to Accelerate Expansion in Both Footprint and Product Assortment
The company expanded its store network to 137 stores and now serves over 15 million customers across India You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media. Citykart has raised INR 538 crore in Series B funding round, co-led by TPG NewQuest, a secondary private equity platform for Asia within TPG, and A91 Partners, a homegrown investment firm specialising in growth investments. Investcorp, an early backer of Citykart, has made a full exit, while India SME Fund continues to hold a minority stake. EY India acted as the exclusive financial advisor to the transaction. Of the total funding, about INR 120 crore is primary capital, with the remaining INR 418 crore being towards secondary transactions. The primary infusion will enable the company to accelerate expansion in both footprint and product assortment. "This new round of funding is a significant milestone in our journey. We are delighted to welcome TPG NewQuest and A91 Partners as long-term partners who believe in our vision of making affordable fashion accessible to Bharat. The capital infusion will help us grow deeper and wider, invest in innovation, and build a strong, future-ready organisation focused on scale and operational excellence. We've been fortunate to have had the support of Investcorp and India SME Fund in our earlier stages, their belief in our model helped us build a strong foundation," said Sudhanshu Agarwal, Co-founder Citykart. The company expanded its store network to 137 stores and now serves over 15 million customers across India. Growing at more than 40 per cent, the company is now targeting revenue of INR 1300 Cr. "Citykart has demonstrated an exceptional ability to scale profitably in one of the most challenging and underserved segments of Indian retail. Their deep customer understanding, disciplined execution, and strong leadership team make them well-positioned to drive value fashion retail across India. We are excited to partner with them in this next phase of growth," said Bharati Agarwal, TPG NewQuest.
Mint
27-05-2025
- Business
- Mint
Nandan Nilekani-backed bus operator seeks up to $70 million to accelerate its expansion
Bengaluru: IntrCity SmartBus, a Noida-based bus operator, is looking to raise as much as $70 million in Series D fundraising from existing and new investors to fuel its expansion, said three people familiar with the developments. Growth-stage venture capital firm A91 Partners, which has invested in startups such as Sugar Cosmetics, Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, and beverage maker Paper Boat, is likely to pick up a 15-20% stake in IntrCity SmartBus, they said. 'The specifics of the deal are still being worked out. There is considerable interest so more investors may join the round," one of them said. The Series D fundraising round will result in a higher valuation for IntrCity SmartBus, which is currently estimated to be worth about $120 million, said the second of the three people. IntrCity SmartBus, which operates buses on intercity routes (as its name suggests), will use the capital to add 500 buses over the next two years and serve 1 million travellers every month. The company will also use a part of the funds to expand the operations of its companion brand RailYatri, this person added. IntrCity SmartBus currently operates more than 300 buses through 30 partner operators on more than 630 routes across 16 states in India, handling about 300,000 passengers every month. RailYatri, a train-booking platform, serves more than 14 million users a month. The bus operator previously raised $4.5 million in its Series C fundraising round in February last year from Mirabilis Investment Trust, with existing investors including Nandan Nilekani's family trust, Omidyar Network India, and US-based Ujamaa Ventures participating. Overall, IntrCity SmartBus has raised about $50 million since its inception in 2019. 'We have ambitious plans for the next two years, and we are working on the best strategy to achieve that. Conversations from both private and public market funds is a regular business-as-usual at IntrCity. As of now there is nothing concrete yet," a spokesperson for IntrCity SmartBus said in response to Mint's queries on its fundraising plans. A91 Partners did not respond to Mint's query emailed on Monday. Also read | Mint Exclusive: KKR eyes its largest Asia infra fund topping $9 bn, India to corner a big slice Bus bookings: On the fast-track IntrCity SmartBus expects its revenue, which jumped 70% to ₹540 crore in 2024-25, to climb to ₹1,000 crore by FY27 as it adds 500 buses and new routes connecting remote regions, co-founder and chief executive Manish Rathi said in a statement last month. 'While the bus industry in India spans three generations, the key challenge traditionally has always been balancing scale with profitability. We believe we are the only player in the industry today to have cracked the code of scaling profitably—using technology, data science, and operational compliance as our core enablers," Rathi had said. Competition in India's online bus-booking segment is on the rise. In December, BP Ventures, the venture capital arm of British oil and gas giant BP, invested $9 million in intercity bus operator Zingbus in a Series A funding round. In August last year, Bengaluru-based all-electric bus platform Fresh Bus secured $10 million in a round led by early-stage venture capital firm Maniv. Peak XV-backed travel fintech company Scapia also ventured into bus travel with 'Scapia Buses' in July last year. Also read | Flipkart on track to open 800 dark stores by December as quick commerce booms Between July and September 2024, India's intercity bus market saw a gross ticketing value of ₹4,000 crore, with over 5,000 active private bus operators serving 44.78 million passengers, according to redBus's India BusTrack Report. In FY24, redBus, a bus-booking platform owned by online travel platform MakeMyTrip Ltd, recorded a gross merchandise value (GMV) of over $1 billion and revenue of $100-103 million, with a growth rate in the mid-twenties. The company planned to maintain this growth trajectory in FY25. MakeMyTrip's bus-ticketing segment saw its revenue rise nearly 32% year-on-year to $31.8 million in the latest October-December quarter. India's intercity bus industry is projected to touch ₹1.04 trillion in value by 2026, expanding at a compound annual growth rate of over 6%, according to a February 2024 report by the Internet and Mobile Association of India and Grant Thornton Bharat. Also read | Investcorp wins big from Citykart exit after co gets capital from A91, TPG | Company Business News
Zawya
27-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Bahrain's Investcorp offloads stake in Indian retailer Citykart to TPG NewQuest, A91 Partners
Bahrain's Investcorp has offloaded its entire stake in Indian retailer Citykart to secondary private equity platform TPG NewQuest, and India's A91 Partners, which specialises in growth investments for an undisclosed sum. It represents the fifth full exit from the firm's India Consumer Growth Portfolio (ICGP) and the sixth liquidity event for the India franchise in the past 32 months, Investcorp said. Citykart, which focuses on fashion retail in Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns across India, in a separate announcement, revealed it raised 53.8 billion Indian rupees ($63 million) in a Series B funding round, co-led by TPG NewQuest and A91 Partners. Citykart has said about INR 1.20 billion is primary capital, with the remaining capital raise to be allocated to secondary transactions. Investcorp, with $55 billion in assets, was an early investor in Citykart 2019, which saw the retailer's expand its network from 37 to 137 stores, with an estimated revenue of INR 8.8 billion for FY 2025, the investment firm said. Other recent realisations for Investcorp in India include the sale of its stake in luggage maker Safari Industries, a profitable exit from eyecare specialist ASG Eye Hospital, a planned IPO-led exit from health-benefits administrator Medi Assist Healthcare, and a partial exit from dialysis network NephroPlus. Investcorp said it continues to have active Indian holdings in companies including Global Dental, Wakefit, Canpac, Xpressbees, Zolo, Freshtohome, among others. (Writing by Bindu Rai, editing by Brinda Darasha)
Economic Times
27-05-2025
- Business
- Economic Times
Citykart's big haul; A new AI race
Happy Tuesday! Value fashion retailer Citykart has raised fresh funds to fuel its expansion plans. This and more in today's ETtech Morning Dispatch. Also in the letter: ■ Flipkart's growth charge ■ Earnings corner■ Agentic AI in BFSI TPG NewQuest, A91 back Citykart in Rs 538 crore round at Rs 1,400 crore valuation Sudhanshu Agarwal, founder, Citykart Citykart, a value retail chain serving middle- and lower-income consumers in smaller Indian cities, has raised Rs 538 crore in a funding round led by TPG NewQuest and A91 Partners. The mix of primary and secondary transactions pegs the company's valuation at around Rs 1,400 crore, people familiar with the matter told us. Deal details: Rs 120 crore in fresh capital will fund expansion beyond Citykart's core markets of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Rs 418 crore was raised via secondary share sales. Middle East-based alternative asset manager Investcorp has exited fully, clocking a 4x return on its 2019 investment. Another early backer, India SME Investments, has pared its stake by half. About the company: Citykart operates 137 stores across tier-II and tier-III cities, with plans to add 40–50 outlets annually in states like Rajasthan, Odisha, Assam, and Jharkhand. Revenues have grown by nearly 70% over the last two financial years to over Rs 900 crore in FY25. Founder and MD Sudhanshu Agarwal said the company expects to cross Rs 1,300 crore in revenue in FY26, and noted that Citykart has remained consistently profitable for the last five years. Context setting: Citykart plays in the mass-market apparel segment alongside listed firms such as VMart and private players like Vishal Mega Mart and Style Baazar. The fresh round underscores growing investor appetite for affordable fashion targeting India's non-metro consumers. By comparison: VMart, a listed peer, is valued at Rs 5,500–6,000 crore and has an annual revenue of Rs 2,300 crore (around 2.5x sales). Vishal Mega Mart, backed by Partners Group and Kedaara Capital, was last valued at nearly $1.3–1.5 billion (Rs 10,000–12,000 crore) with revenue exceeding Rs 7,000 crore. Style Baazar, a regional player, has a comparable store count but a smaller scale and revenues of around Rs 500-600 crore. Post-deal, TPG NewQuest has emerged as Citykart's largest institutional investor, followed by A91 Partners and India SME. Pet food brand Drools turns unicorn after Nestlé SA picks up minority stake Homegrown pet food brand Drools turned unicorn after Swiss packaged food giant Nestlé SA acquired a minority stake for an undisclosed amount. Hot cake: This is Drools' second major raise after LVMH-backed private equity firm L Catterton invested $60 million in June 2023 at a valuation of $600 million. The transaction underscores rising investor interest in India's $3.5 billion pet care market, with players like Godrej and Emami planning a foray. Slikk raises $10 million: Bengaluru-based 60-minute fashion delivery startup Slikk has raised $10 million in a funding round led by Nexus Venture Partners. Operation Coding war, thanks AI A fresh front has opened in the AI wars, as global tech giants and nimble startups race to dominate the future of software development. What's happening: Google has unveiled its coding agent Jules. Microsoft has launched its GitHub AI agent. OpenAI has rolled out Codex and acquired Windsurf to bolster its arsenal. Rapid adoption: Google and Microsoft say AI now writes around 30% of their code. At InMobi, founder Naveen Tewari claims the figure is already 50%. The AI coding tool market is projected to reach $12.6 billion by 2028, growing at a CAGR of 28%, according to market intelligence firm MarketsandMarkets. The draw? A compelling mix of higher productivity, intuitive interfaces, and strong value-for-money. Challenges: But, as AI writes more code, teams are left reviewing more of it. Several founders we spoke to said they've automated large parts of the review process to avoid any customer-facing fallout. Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch! Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India's tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees. The opportunity: Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers. Boost your brand's visibility among the tech-savvy community. Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand's goals. What's next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@ to explore sponsorship opportunities. Flipkart reports up to 25% growth amid ecommerce slowdown Kalyan Krishnamurthy, group CEO, Flipkart Flipkart group CEO Kalyan Krishnamurthy outlined the company's growth trajectory and IPO plans at an internal town hall on Monday. What's new: Krishnamurthy told employees that Flipkart is seeing 20–25% year-on-year growth in orders across its platforms in May, with expectations of hitting 30% growth in June, defying a broader slowdown in the ecommerce sector. Why it matters: The update comes as Flipkart prepares to shift its domicile from Singapore to India, aligning with domestic regulations ahead of a planned IPO in 2026. By the numbers: Zoom out: Krishnamurthy and top executives Ramesh Gururaja, Hemant Badri, and Seema Nair used the town hall to lay out priorities across supply chain, customer experience, and group is also focusing on Gen Z consumers through fashion, travel, and Shopsy, its value platform competing with Meesho and Amazon Bazaar. FirstCry's Q4 loss widens to Rs 111 crore; full-year Ebitda improves Supam Maheshwari, CEO, FirstCry Brainbees Solutions, which operates omnichannel baby products retailer FirstCry, reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 111 crore in Q4 FY25, widening from Rs 43 crore in the year-ago period and Rs 15 crore in the previous quarter. Operating revenue stood at Rs 1,930 crore, up 16% year-on-year but down 11% sequentially. Nazara Technologies Q4 revenue nearly doubles; net profit rises to Rs 4 crore Nitish Mittersain, CEO, Nazara Technologies Online gaming firm Nazara Technologies posted a strong growth in the fourth quarter of FY25. The firm reported a 95% rise in operating revenue to Rs 520 crore, while net profit surged to Rs 4 crore from Rs 18 lakh in the year-ago period. Awfis net profit rises nine-fold in Q4, revenue up 46% Sumit Lakhani, CEO, Awfis Office space solutions provider Awfis recorded a 46% rise in operating revenue to Rs 339 crore for the March quarter, fueled by greater enterprise contributions, allied services, and better efficiency. Net profit rose ninefold to Rs 11.3 crore. Other Top Stories By Our Reporters (L-R) Harsh Jain, Neeraj Singh, Lalit Keshre and Ishan Bansal, cofounders, Groww Groww files draft papers for IPO, eyes $700 million to $1 billion listing: Online investment platform Groww has submitted its draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) to the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to launch an initial public offering (IPO), according to a public notice on May 25. Financial services players use agentic AI to automate workflows: The BFSI sector, including players like HDFC Bank, State Bank of India (SBI), and Wells Fargo, is planning to leverage agentic AI to automate workflows intelligently. Global Picks We Are Reading ■ How I shorted $TRUMP coin (and got to have dinner with the President) (The Verge) ■ Here are the nuclear fission startups backed by Big Tech (TechCrunch) ■ The real cost of AI is being paid in deserts far from Silicon Valley (Rest of World) Updated On May 27, 2025, 07:23 AM IST
Time of India
23-04-2025
- Business
- Time of India
A91 secures $665mn in 3rd fund for startup bets
BENGALURU: A91 Partners has finalised its third fund at $665 million, joining other India-focused venture firms that recently secured funding capital amid growing international attention. Founded in 2018 by four former executives of Sequoia Capital India (now Peak XV Partners), A91 focuses its investments across various sectors, including consumer, healthcare, financial services, and industrials. The organisation provides growth-stage funding between $10 million and $50 million. Their portfolio includes investments in companies such as Digit Insurance , Atomberg, and Push Health. The firm announced the fund closure on LinkedIn, emphasising their dedication to supporting Indian entrepreneurs for extended periods. "We started A91... with the belief that patient capital will play an important role in accelerating value creation in Indian businesses," the post read. This announcement follows other significant fundraising activities in India's venture space. Accel secured $650 million for its India and Southeast Asia-focused Fund VIII in Jan 2025, whilst Stellaris Venture Partners concluded its third fund at $300 million last year, maintaining its focus on early-stage investments in SaaS, consumer internet, and fintech. Despite reduced venture funding for Indian startups throughout 2023 and early 2024, institutional VC funds continue to attract substantial investment. Global limited partners maintain their confidence in India's long-term potential, particularly in areas driven by domestic consumption, digitalisation, and infrastructure development. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . Master Value & Valuation with ET! Learn to invest smartly & decode financials. Limited seats at 33% off – Enroll now!
