Not worried about cybersecurity? Think again!

What do companies like Sony, Yahoo, Microsoft, Marriotts, Facebook, Twitter have in common? They have all been victims of cyberattacks. Experts estimate that there will be a cyberattack once every 11 seconds in 2021, to compare, in 2016 there was a cyberattack once every 40 seconds. Dealing with a cyberattack comes at a huge price and is expected to cost economies USD 6.1 trillion, annually. You could be a nation, a company or an individual, but in today’s hyper-connected world, everybody is at risk of being a victim of a cyberattack.

Organisations have typically looked at cybersecurity as something only to be dealt with by IT Managers using a garden variety of firewalls and other technological tools often classified as cyber mumbo-jumbo. However, a cyber-secure environment is not just a product of tools, it is an approach and mindset that has to be integrated into every aspect of an organisation’s  online conduct. 

A startup faces many challenges across the board, from fund-raising to prioritizing their major spends. As an entrepreneur, it would be easy to believe that cyberattacks would be something faced by larger companies who have more to lose. Unfortunately, a cybercriminal only looks for opportunities and vulnerabilities, exploiting either one to move in for a kill. Case in point, in September 2020, New York based, cyber threat detection startup Cygilant was hit by a Ransomware attack and their data appeared on the dark web which was later removed but by then the damage was already done. 

A cyberattack can derail businesses easily and not every company has what it takes to recover from one. Fortunately, there is much that one can do to create an organisation that is resilient and secure from cyberattacks and especially as a startup, it can be something that makes you stand out from the crowd, making you more investment-friendly. Learn more about how this can be done by joining our Masterclass on Making Cybersecurity Your Competitive Advantage conducted by Ajay Singh, Corporate Advisor, Former CEO and Author of Cyberstrong: A Primer on Cyber Risk Management for Business Managers, on 17th March, between 5.30-7.00 pm! 

Register Now at: http://bit.ly/MAAcademyMar2102

For more information about this session or Mumbai Angels Network, please feel free to reach out to: chandni@mumbaiangels.in / miloni@mumbaiangels.in 

We’re looking forward to having you join us for this super-relevant session! 

Cryptocurrency - A Tangled Web

Love it or don’t understand it, cryptocurrency has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, first with bitcoin values against the dollar constantly fluctuating and then the Indian government and others, considering or driving at an absolute ban. The future of cryptocurrency in India might be uncertain at this point in time, however, the world over, this new-age currency is starting to gain more traction and acceptance. Just recently, Goldman Sachs restarted its cryptocurrency desk, with plans to look into the possibility of a bitcoin exchange traded fund. Earlier this year, Tesla announced its plans to accept bitcoin as  payment and has also purchased USD 1.5 billion worth of the currency.

 

So what is driving this interest in bitcoin, ethereum, litecoin and other types of cryptocurrency? Many expect the hype to wear off in time, but some expect that these currencies will take over the world some day, leading to a kind of parallel economy.

 

There is no question that cryptocurrency is complex, exciting, and to most governments it means decentralization and therefore, an instrument of anarchy. To cut a long story short, cryptocurrency is hugely misunderstood, while coming with far too many variables, and to set the record straight, Sidharth Sogani, Founder and CEO of CREBACO, will be taking us through its various aspects in our Masterclass on Demystifying Cryptocurrencies & Bitcoin.

 

CREBACO is a global leader in research intelligence and due diligence focused on the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry. By fostering an in-depth understanding of the cryptocurrency landscape, they aim to regulate, and promote a safer approach to considering investments in this space.

 

In this Masterclass, Sidharth will tackle the governance and regulatory aspects, explain to us why we need to give Cryptocurrency a fair hearing, discuss its emergence as a Global Asset Class, and lots more that you’ll have to tune in to find out!

 

Join us for this free and open to all session on 10th March, between 5.30 - 7.00 pm! To register, simply RSVP here: http://bit.ly/MAAcademyCrypto_01 

 

For more information about this session or Mumbai Angels Network, please feel free to reach out to: chandni@mumbaiangels.in / miloni@mumbaiangels.in 

 

We’re looking forward to seeing you and will be thrilled to have you join us! 

One point six technologies raises $1mn in Pre-Series A round

 

One point six technologies raises $1mn in Pre-Series A round

Mumbai Angels (MA) Network portfolio company One Point Six Technologies has raised $1mn in Pre-Series A round from US Based SOSV, Australian fund Artesian and IPV along with some existing investors. One Point Six Technologies, formerly known as Leadstart, has an integrated platform that allows authors to self-publish globally in multiple languages. The Company, founded in 2010 by Swarup Nanda, had recently launched the app Pencil - a reading and writing platform for multiple formats of content from shorts to books that enables writers to create multiple types of content in 60 languages, continuously enhancing their work powered by meaningful reading insights, as they engage with the readers and monetise their content. The company’s portfolio covers a wide range of genres: Fiction, Non-fiction, Children, Business, Management, Finance, World Affairs, Politics, History, Self-Help & Empowerment, Health & Fitness, Spirituality & Religion, Philosophy, Cookery, Reference, Biography, Travel, Poetry, Activities, Hobbies, Crafts & Sports.

"In the creator economy ecosystem, while a lot of solutions are being built for content creators in the audio-visual space, little is being built for writers and authors to be able to monetize their content. Our effort at Pencil is to help writers to become authors, improve their content, build audiences and monetize their creative pursuits in various ways.”, Swarup Nanda, founder, and chief executive officer, Pencil commented..

Vijay Hede, MA Investor said “I was drawn to Leadstart Publishing Pvt. Ltd. for their unique innovation of launching the world's first publishing platform to empower each person to express their creativity by writing and distributing a book in e-book and paperback format.  The immense size of this opportunity has drawn me to invest in this start-up added of course is the drive, the focus, the team at Leadstart Publishing Pvt. Ltd. (AKA) One Point Six Technologies Pvt. Ltd.”

Nandini Mansinghka, Co-Promoter and CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented “Their tech-driven approach in integrating publishers, platforms, and communities is a key differentiator; now with this new innovation - Pencil, it will help content writers to reach wider audience as it will help them to transform content into multiple languages and we see tremendous growth in this segment both in India and internationally".

Flavors 2021

After last year’s on-ground flagship event, Flavors 2021 made a comeback in a crisper, virtual, format featuring big names in the food and beverage industry, including Rahul Akerkar, Amruda Nair, Raghav Joshi, Rajat Mahajan, Navin Honagudi and Sahil Jatana. Our associate partner for the evening was EagleOwl, who provide restaurant management and analytics software.

Rahul Akerkar, Founder and Managing Partner at Qualia Hospitality LLP and India’s original restaurant entrepreneur, kicked off the evening with a keynote address. He shared his views on how the pandemic has presented new challenges to restaurant owners apart from dealing with existing burdens like massive overheads and crippling GST rates. Overnight, the lockdown forced restaurant owners to shut shop and develop new strategies to keep their patrons engaged, including having themed weekend meals. Rahul graciously took on questions from the audience and the MA team. He reflected on his incredible journey in the food industry, his passion reflecting in the fresh perspective he manages to maintain when it comes to the assortment of meals that he serves up at his new restaurant - Qualia.

The keynote address was followed up with a riveting panel discussion featuring Amruda Nair - Director, Araiya Hotels & Resorts, Raghav Joshi - Co-founder & CEO- India BU, Rebel Foods, Sahil Jatana - Co-founder, SVAMI, and Navin Honagudi- Managing Director, Kae Capital, while Rajat Mahajan, Partner at Deloitte India, took on the mantle of moderator. The topic for discussion was about creating a parity of experience across various platforms. The food and beverage sector has been forced to adapt to a constantly evolving pandemic which is yet to come to a close, and in this time, several pre-existing business models have had to undergo drastic changes. Before the pandemic, restaurateurs relied on patrons queuing up at their doors, but have now been forced to deliver their gourmet meals instead, and are being challenged to create memorable dining experiences. Beverage companies were forced to shift focus from Ho/Re/Ca to purely retail and online sales to stay afloat, unable to depend on the otherwise burgeoning party circuit . Restaurants whose clientele generally included travellers, had to change strategy and reach out to locals. Additionally, the food and beverage industry were hit with rising costs owing to the safety and hygiene protocols they have been forced to implement because of the pandemic. At the end of the day, the changes have been complex and many and with no end in sight just yet for the pandemic, entrepreneurs have had to rise to the occasion. Amidst all of this change, they have had to adapt, innovate and most importantly, and learn to survive and thrive in this new normal.


The panellists shared their views, drawing upon their own varied set of experiences in the past year. Bringing in the investment angle were Rajat and Navin who spoke about evaluating and tracking various metrics to understand the new dynamics of success and failure. From the entrepreneurs’ perspective, Sahil and Raghav, shared how they were pushed to transform their business approaches to pull through this difficult period as Amruda Nair, who is both an investor and entrepreneur, shared her unique insight, marrying these two different schools of thought. With a shared passion for food, beverages and hospitality, our speakers and lively audience, made Flavors 2021, a truly vibrant, virtual celebration of food.

ixamBee an online learning platform raises funds through Mumbai Angels Network

ixamBee an online learning platform raises funds through Mumbai Angels Network

ixamBee , a complete online learning platform for government jobs, has raised funding led by Mumbai Angles. ixamBee provides learning courses for competitive exams for jobs in central government, state government, banks and other public sector organisations. About 50 million applicants appear for various government job exams every year and most of them come from tier 2-3 towns and villages. After Covid-19, job losses and uncertainty in the private sector has led to an increased level of interest in the already attractive government job space. ixamBee is the only platform that provides online mock tests free for more than 50 such exams and provides complete online learning experience starting from career guidance to interview preparation. More than 5 million students have been benefited by ixamBee. Thousands of selections and student testimonials have contributed to the fast organic growth of the platform. The current funding is led by Mumbai Angles Network and also received funding from external investors. Existing investors including Keyur Joshi, co-founder MakeMyTrip, also participated in the current round, reaffirming their belief in ixamBee. ixamBee will utilise the funds to enhance its offerings by investing in technology for richer customer experience and in developing content for courses for various government jobs. The funds will also be utilised to increase the reach of ixamBee through various marketing channels and also spread exam awareness amongst prospective applicants, many of whom miss opportunities, due to lack of knowledge/information on such government job exams. Considering the recruitment season has re-started after a pause during the Covid-19 lockdown, with this funding, ixamBee is well placed to accelerate growth to the next level.

Chandraprakash Joshi, Co-founder & CEO at ixamBee says “At the beginning of the lockdown, we were worried. However, we tweaked the strategy and during the last two quarters we observed more than 100% revenue growth. This has made the team more resilient and the business stronger. Mumbai Angels led investment at this stage is going to help us to make ixamBee's learning experience (iLX) superior while accelerating our growth multiple times.”

Nandini Mansinghka, Co-promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented, "We are happy to welcome ixamBee to our Portfolio. The platform is created by an experience and super talented team who have incorporated online courses for government jobs plus mock tests which provides a 360 degree training to the aspirant leading to accelerated the growth."

Budget 2021: Impact on Investors and Startups

 

View this email in your browser We have been highlighting to the government and at various industry bodies and forums that the key fillip the government can give today for the startup ecosystem is to significantly improve the Ease of Doing business for our founders. This remains the single biggest hurdle in making India a truly global leader in giving birth to startups and helping hundreds of them to become unicorns in the next few years. This budget has addressed a few of those items long standing on the industry’s wishlist One Person Companies: This is a good move and a long standing ask from the startup ecosystem. This will enable single founders to incorporate companies without necessarily requiring more people either as shareholders or on the board.These one person companies will be able to retain their status without restriction on paid up capital and turnover. They will also be allowed to convert into any other type of company at any time. Restrictions on NRIs setting up OPCs have been eased and presence in India of 120 days in a year enough to set up an OPC. Details of the scheme to be scrutinized more carefully on the exact compliance burden.   Compliance requirements reduced for companies with revenue of up to 20 Crores or paid up capital of INR 2 crores: This revenue has been increased from the previous number of 5 crores. The other number that has been increased for reduced compliance is a paid up capital from 50 Lakhs to 2 crores. Both these will help increase the ease of doing business for companies in India.   Decriminalization of compliance in LLP entities is also a welcome step. This will help the smaller entities think through their business and financing models without worrying about criminal liabilities in case there is a gap in compliance.   Merging of SEBI Act, depository Act and a few other acts will have a long standing impact on the angel investing framework towards creating a robust and supportive regulatory framework.   Eligibility of Tax holiday has been extended to March 2022, for companies registered as startups with the government. This will impact only those startups which are profitable. Since most of the startups funded by the MA network are at the initial stage and are still burning cash, this provision may not be beneficial to our portfolio.   Extending Capital Gains tax exemption for Investors in startups to March 2022: While this scheme had been introduced last year and the time for it has been extended to one more year, the requirements for the exemption of reinvestment in a government recognised fund is not useful. More is needed on this front for this to be a true needle mover for investors.   Tax Audit: No tax audit required if gross sales are upto 10 crores and 95% sales and expenses are digital payments. Helpful for start ups with large volume of turnover with net losses

MA Portfolio company Knocksense raises next round of funding

 

MA Portfolio company Knocksense raises next round of funding

Lucknow-based Knocksense, a hyperlocal media house specializing in non-divisive news curation, co-founded by Vibhore Mayank and Varul Mayank, has raised $200K from We-Founders Circle and LetsVenture. Knocksense produces visually-appealing content on Indian cities, covering subjects that often escape the attention of mainstream media houses. In June 2020, they received a small funding from the Mumbai Angels Lifeline Investment Program (an interim product launched by Mumbai Angels during the Covid-19 pandemic to support the Indian startup ecosystem). This funding will support their efforts to scale up operations by expanding into more tier-II cities as well as launch video stories and content in Hindi.

Vibhore Mayank, Founder, Knocksense commented, "After raising the bridge round from Mumbai Angels Network a few months back, our discussions with other investors fast tracked and as a result we were able to close the current round in time. Post this round, as a content producer our focus will be on creating engaging content, which is a mix of local news, recommendations, videos, features, and more. When it comes to news, we are committed to producing only non-divisive stories, which does not breed negativity or create sensationalism. Tier-II cities with an active millennial audience will be our target."

Amitesh Pandey, lead investor says, "I invested in Knocksense in the seed round in 2018, since then I've seen the company grow more than 10 times both in terms of revenue and traction, after reinvesting via Mumbai Angles in the bridge round I am really glad to know that the model and the team we trusted are now backed by marquee investors and platforms such as Lets Venture, shows that Knocksense is solving the news crisis in India in the most innovative way possible. Upwards and onwards."

Nandini Mansinghka, Co-promoter & CEO, Mumbai Angels Network commented, "We’re delighted to see another MA backed portfolio company Knocksense which was a part of our lifeline program gain additional investment which will help them to scale up and expand their reach. We at Mumbai Angels see great potential in their unique brand of digital content”.