Lattu Kids raises seed funding from Mumbai Angels Network

 

Mumbai, November, 2020: EdTech startup Lattu Media Pvt Ltd (“Lattu Kids”)  has raised seed funding from Mumbai Angels Network. This follows Airtel picking up a strategic stake in Lattu Kids in June 2020 as part of the Airtel Startup Accelerator Program.  Lattu Kids specializes in digital learning tools for children. Its popular Lattu Kids app focuses on improving English vocabulary, English reading and Maths foundation skills for children under the age of 10 years through entertaining, fun learning animated videos and games. With this latest round of investment, Lattu Kids plans to ramp up hiring of digital talent and scale up its product portfolio to serve the fast growing market for quality education content for kids. Airtel is already collaborating with Lattu Kids to take its content deeper and wider through its robust digital platforms that have over 160 Mn MAUs. Vivek Bhutyani, Co-founder and CEO, Lattu Kids said: "Today, early foundational learning  is the most overlooked category in education across India . It however sets the foundation of how well the child will perform in primary and higher secondary. One of the main reasons why parents love the Lattu Kids app is because of our unique approach to learning. Our fun led learning approach helps provide clarity of concepts leading to better learning retention amongst children. With Mumbai Angels investors partnering with us, Lattu Kids will invest in hiring talent around product, curriculum and technology. With Airtel Accelerator’s steadfast support, we are confident to succeed in this market.” Abhishek Mittal, Lead Investor, Mumbai Angels, added: “Widespread access to quality education at an early age will enable us to build a more inclusive progressive society over time. We believe that Vivek and his team at Lattu Kids have the solid background and deep domain expertise to connect the dots to deliver this efficiently in a fun learning format in the early learning education space. Their commendable digital distribution network such as the partnership with Airtel along with presence on YouTube, Ola Prime Play and the Xiaomi ecosystem, gives them access to rapid growth platforms which will help them scale.” Nandini Mansinghka, Co-promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network, commented “We are excited to welcome Lattu Kids to our portfolio. They have built a strong English language foundation of listening, speaking, reading and comprehension skills with the help of fun learning animation videos for kids, which prepares the child for elementary schooling. Especially in the current COVID times, this app is all what parents need for their children.”

Svami raises INR 6.5 crore in bridge round led by Mumbai Angels Network

 

Svami, a non-alcoholic, aerated beverage brand has raised INR 6.5 crore in a bridge round, leading up to a Series A. The round, led by Mumbai Angels also has current investors participating which include Rukam Capital Trust; Niren Shah, Managing Director of Norwest Venture Partners and Ashish Chand’s Family Office - Yukti Securities. The consumer startup will use the newly raised funds to: Launch a ready to drink product line Penetrate deeper into existing geographies and grow into newer cities in India Apart from being the pioneer in launching premium products in the aerated category, Svami is the only brand in the country to have 100% R&D and manufacturing in house.  Svami’s beverage portfolio is available at select retail outlets, wine shops, and leading restaurants-bars and is now available in 8 states in India (including Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Goa and Pune) and 2 international markets with over 900 touchpoints.  Bouncing back from Covid-19 Svami took a number of measures to not only survive but make the most of the difficult conditions faced during the lockdown. Pre covid, 70% of revenues were from HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Café)  and 30% from retail, whereas now the company is back to pre covid revenues only with retail sales. Svami also launched a 3 Calorie Tonic Water during the lockdown with a D2C approach which quickly became a success. Svami has also had the best online customer engagement during lockdown because of a host of consumer facing initiatives.  On the fundraise, Sahil Jatana, Co-Founder & CEO at Svami said, “We started Svami to create premium aerated beverages that did not exist in the country. Since launch, we have seen massive product acceptance across retail and HoReCa (Hotel/Restaurant/Café) and now we are doubling down on our first mover advantage with deeper retail presence and a new category launch. Fund raising in the time of covid and an era of zoom calls has had its own way of working and we are happy to have Mumbai Angels be a part of our journey. Nandini Mansinghka, Co-promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented “Non-alcoholic beverage is relatively an uncovered space in India which allows companies to create innovation opportunities. Health conscious consumers are changing the narrative of this segment and companies have to adjust and accelerate their strategies in this fast-changing landscape.We are happy to have Svami, a progessive drinks company, is making non-alcoholic drinks on their premium platform as a part of our expanding portfolio in the food and beverage sector.”

About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 500+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai) & 25+ cities across the globe. The network today has one of the strongest portfolios in the country with 150+ companies, 70+ exits plus next round investments.

MA Portfolio Snackible raises Bridge Round

 

MA Portfolio Snackible raises Bridge Round

Snackible, a healthy snacks company catering to one of the fastest-growing verticals in the FMCG sector by offering a range of products that are nutritious, tasty and affordably priced, has raised a bridge round from Mumbai Angels Network and other existing investors. Started in 2015 as an online-first company, Snackible aimed to alter and revolutionize the finger food and munchies industry in India by introducing healthy and tasty snacking options. In 2018, they raised an angel round from Mumbai Angels and others. Snackible now has over 42 SKU’s and has served over 1,50,000 online orders. Snackible aims to use the funds of this Pre Series A round in marketing and brand building, to build their team, and scale their infrastructure to absorb the anticipated growth in the coming quarters. The company is already in talks with a few institutional investors and is aspiring to raise a larger round in the next 12-18 months. Aditya Sanghvi, Founder & CEO of Snackible shared, “The health food segment within FMCG has been growing quite rapidly in the last couple of years and with the COVID crisis we have seen a huge consumer behavior shift towards healthier eating habits. We believe Snackible is at the cusp of building a strong health-focused FMCG snack brand. This fundraise will help us invest capital in the right areas to build scale in the coming quarters. Mumbai Angels has been an investor in our business for over 2 years and it is great validation to see them participate in the following rounds as well.” MA Investor Rishabh Dugar remarked “It’s a wonderful thing to see such a positive endeavor to make our lives healthy with bite-sized snacks. The world revolves around munching nibbles not just to eat better but to destress as well. It directly impacts our health. Snackible has taken a significant and prolific challenge: to help us eat better, move better and live better, one snack at a time.” Nandini Mansinghka, Co-Promoter and CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented “We have seen increase in demand from VC funds and the next level strategic players in the companies which is creating an environment where healthier food and beverages options are more affordable, accessible and engaging to young adults. We are delighted to see our portfolio company raising their Pre Series Round A from existing and new investors.

About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 500+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai) & 25+ cities across the globe. The network today has one of the strongest portfolios in the country with 150+ companies, 70+ exits plus next round investments.

MA Portfolio Company Unocoin raises funding from Tim Draper

MA Portfolio Company Unocoin raises funding from Tim Draper MA Network portfolio company, Unocoin has raised funding from US venture capitalist Tim Draper’s Draper Associates, along with participation from XBTO Ventures and 2020 Ventures. The startup has been featured among the Top 20 companies in The Fintech20: India List, and has won many prestigious awards such as  the ‘Golden SABRE’ award in financial communications for their project, ‘Bit-by-Bit: Building Bitcoin in India’ and ‘TECH30’ award from YourStory. They were recently selected in the Top 5 Cryptocurrency Exchanges in India by The Week. Sathvik Vishwanath, CEO of Unocoin, commented, “We’ve seen a dramatic increase of crypto adoption in India following the lifting of an industry-wide ban by the Reserve Bank of India enacted in 2018. Customer growth rates have surged by more than 10X in the month the supreme court verdict was announced, accompanied by a 5X increase in trading volume in subsequent months. The funding will help us scale our business further, and give us a strong financial foothold to expand our platform’s offerings. We will double down on our efforts to improve our product features and offerings, which will enhance the overall usability and functionality for our customers.” Nandini Mansinghka, Co-Promoter and CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented “We are delighted with this development and are excited to see how Unocoin brings in crypto-related technology innovation with their current international fundraise as the market for crypto adoption is a large one that is growing exponentially.” About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 450+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai). It has a 140+ strong portfolio with 45+ exits and has invested 150+ crores.

Mumbai Angels Network LifeSciences - a focused platform for the sector

 

Mumbai Angels Network LifeSciences - a focused platform for the sector Mumbai Angels (MA) Network launched the LifeSciences Vertical in February 2020,to provide a single platform for Startups, Corporates, Investors and Institutions in the segment to collaborate, share knowledge and grow. We are seeing an increasing interest from our network of angel investors in lifesciences who are keen to participate in the growth story of new age pharma/healthcare companies. In the backdrop of the pandemic and the ever increasing need to understand the challenges and opportunities in this segment, MA Network organized our First Virtual Conference on LifeSciences Sector on 27th March 2020 which was specially organized for Corporates, Investors, Startups, Institutions and Enablers from the domain. The panel, comprised of sector experts and stalwarts shared their thoughts on how stakeholders will have to contribute to make India a Global LifeSciences Role Model. See More In June, Delhi-based medtech startup Crimson Healthcare raised Rs 1.75 Cr from Mumbai Angels Network Read More & in September, biotech startup Mestastop raised successful funding Read More On 28th August 2020, MA Network organised a large format Lifesciences Virtual Summit - a 3 hour Conference with panel discussions across Biotech, Healthtech and Pharma solutions transforming the LifeSciences sector. The event was well attended by C-level executives and decision makers from companies, large corporations, innovative start-ups, angel investors and venture capitalists. WIth having Dr Krishna Ella, Bharat Biotech and Manish Gupta, Indegene as Keynote Speakers. Santosh Marathe, Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai; Niraj Didwania, HealthCare Global (HCG); Monika Sood, Arete Advisors; Dr Oommen John, Asia Pacific Association for Medical Informatics, Chhitiz Kumar, Phillips; Manish Gupta, Sequent Scientific; Rema Subramanian, Ankur Capital Fund; Amitvikram Sharma, Claris Capital Limited; Venkat Bundla, Garphi Biosciences Pvt Ltd; TCM Sundaram, Chiratae Ventures India; Dr R Kishore Kumar, Cloudnine Group of Hospitals and many others shared their insights with an eager audience. Nandini Mansinghka, Co-Promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network said “Our dedicated LifeSciences vertical is a platform between Pharma/Healthcare companies and startups and investors  to bring disruptive innovations in the sector to the forefront.” About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 450+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai). It has a 140+ strong portfolio with 45+ exits and has invested 150+ crores.

Mestastop, a Biotech start-up, raises funding from Mumbai Angels Network

 

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Mestastop, a Biotech start-up, raises funding from Mumbai Angels Network  Mestastop is a Bangalore based biotech startup that is stopping the unstoppable ‘cancer metastasis’ and giving life a second chance. Metastasis is the movement of tumor cells through blood and formation of multiple tumors into different secondary sites of the body. Metastasis is responsible for almost 90% of cancer deaths. Unfortunately, though cancer treatments have advanced with targeted therapy and immunotherapy, there is still a huge gap as none of them addresses metastasis. MestaStop aims to provide a solution for such challenges with their Smart Science Strategy; a combination of in vitro tests for scoring compounds (as per their inhibitory potential of metastasis in totality) and then progressing the lead molecules in genetically engineered xenograft models, that stays true to the biology but is faster and easier to monitor. Dr. Arnab Roy Chowdhury, Founder said, “Mestastop is trying to solve a highly complex global healthcare problem and an investment from Mumbai Angels is not only a validation of our vision and progress but also a shot of adrenaline during the pandemic crisis, priming us for the next level.” Satyakam Mohanty, MA member shares his thoughts on the investment, “Discovery is as much key to treating metastatic cancer as is the cure, if not more. The nature of metastatic tumours is such that cure becomes exponentially harder (and more expensive), the later the discovery. Using unique cell based detection IP techniques, Mestastop is charting a pioneering and much needed path to early detection of metastasis. Such work is key to furthering mankind’s understanding of human health.” Nandini Mansinghka, Co-promoter and CEO Mumbai Angels Network, commented, “Mestastop aims to create a common metastasis directed proprietary platform that will address both discovery and diagnostic goals. We are excited to see how Mestastop will create solutions for cancer care. We see our new LifeSciences vertical growing and we are happy to see more companies from this sector becoming part of our expanding portfolio”  About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 450+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai). It has a 140+ strong portfolio with 45+ exits and has invested 150+ crores.

No lockdown at MA Network | Record deals closed between April - September'20

 

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No lockdown at Mumbai Angels Network | Record deals closed between April - September Mumbai Angels (MA) Network has successfully closed a record of 19  deals during the lockdown period (April’20 to September’20). In a challenging financial environment, 19 startups have raised funds through the vast network of investors on the MA platform located across the globe. MA Network has always been a sector agnostic platform and during this period, we have invested in exciting upcoming sectors like Defence, Agritech, Artificial Intelligence, Wearable Tech, Clean Tech, Ed-Tech, Healthtech, among others Highlights from the diverse set closed during this time.  Big Bang Boom Solutions (BBBS), a defence start up, raised INR 7.7 Cr  BluSmart, all electric ride hailing platform; raised INR 51 Cr from Mumbai Angels & others. Crimson Healthcare,focused on ostomy care ; raised INR 1.75 Cr  Dave.AI is an enterprise-grade AI platform for creating the next generation of sales experiences.  Charge+Zone, an electric car charging solutions provider among others “Our Investment strategy involves regular investing and diversification of our portfolio  and we are the platform of choice for both the investors and the startups to raise their initial round of investments. We at MA Network are excited to be part of the growth journey of these stellar companies.” says Nandini Mansinghka, Co-Promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network. “In the past six months, one of the key learnings is that there is no slowdown in investing if investors have a choice of well curated startups backed by the due diligence offered by a platform like ours. With respect to investor behaviour, I would say the investor has become more cautious while evaluating deals. They are asking specific questions around revenue plans, burn rates, runway, ability to survive the pandemic and its long term effects on the startup’s business model. What we also see, is a strong tilt towards innovative business models which will play a crucial role in rebalancing the situation in the New Normal”, she adds. About Mumbai Angels Network:  Started in 2006, Mumbai Angels Network (MA Network) is India’s premier platform focused on new venture investing. The network is today 450+ members strong, across 9 chapters (Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Goa, Pune, Jaipur, Chennai). It has a 140+ strong portfolio with 45+ exits and has invested 150+ crores.