Weekly Startup Watch: Major Funding, IPO Filings, and Financial Health Checks

This week brought significant developments across the Indian startup ecosystem, highlighting major capital inflows in deep tech and fresh commerce, crucial IPO filings, regulatory updates, and leadership reshuffles across fintech, edtech, and consumer technology.

Capital Inflows: Deep Tech, Cleantech, and Innovative Commerce

New Delhi-based cleantech startup Chakr Innovation raised $23 million (Rs 193.5 crore) in a Series C round led by Iron Pillar. The funding will expand its manufacturing capacity, support backward integration, and strengthen R&D in Aluminum-Air battery technology, reducing India’s dependence on lithium-ion batteries. The company, known for Chakr Shield, India’s first certified emission control device for diesel generators, will also establish the country’s first dedicated materials science center.

The AI application development sector saw strong investor activity. Emergent, an AI-powered app-building platform, raised $23 million in Series A funding led by Lightspeed, bringing total funding to $30 million. The Bengaluru-based startup enables users to instantly build and scale apps using autonomous AI agents — no coding required. With $15 million in ARR and over 1.5 million apps created in 90 days, the company plans to expand R&D and open a global hub in Palo Alto.

Similarly, Rocket, a platform that converts natural language into fully functional applications, secured $15 million in seed funding led by Salesforce Ventures and Accel. In just four months, Rocket has onboarded 400,000 users across 180 countries, creating over 500,000 production-ready apps. Co-founders Vishal Virani and Rahul Shingala now hold a 36% post-Series A stake, opting for a longer financial runway amid rapid AI sector growth.

In the fresh commerce space, Handpickd raised $15 million in a Series A round led by Bertelsmann India Investments. The zero-stock, zero-warehouse model sources products directly from farmers after receiving customer orders and delivers within 6–7 hours. This Just-in-Time (JIT) approach minimizes waste and helps maintain profitability. Funds will strengthen tech, supply chain, and operational scalability.

Virtual credit card startup Kiwi raised $24 million (Rs 208.5 crore) in a Series B round led by Vertex Ventures, boosting its valuation by 64% to $100 million. Kiwi enables credit-on-UPI transactions through RuPay cards issued in partnership with banks. Despite growth, the company reported flat FY25 revenue (Rs 3.83 crore) and losses widening to Rs 64 crore.

Financial Results, IPO Filings, and Market Shifts

IPO-bound PhonePe showcased robust FY25 growth, with operating revenue up 40% to Rs 7,115 crore. Adjusted for ESOP costs, PhonePe would have posted a profit of Rs 630 crore, reaffirming its readiness for a $1.5 billion IPO at a $15 billion valuation. The company dominates India’s UPI market with 45.74% share by volume, proving that profitability is achievable in fintech at scale.

Wearable tech startup Ultrahuman turned profitable for the first time in FY25, reporting Rs 565 crore in revenue (up 5X YoY) and a net profit of Rs 73 crore. The brand’s smart rings drove 91% of its income, while global markets—especially the US—accounted for 61% of sales.

Building materials unicorn Infra.Market confidentially filed for a Rs 5,000 crore IPO, combining fresh equity and OFS. The company reported Rs 14,530 crore in revenue and Rs 378 crore in profit in FY24, positioning itself strongly ahead of the listing.

Luxury fashion house Purple Style Labs (PSL), parent of Pernia’s Pop-Up Shop, filed for a Rs 660 crore IPO. While FY25 revenue dipped to Rs 490 crore, the company improved its AOV by 42% to Rs 56,106, though losses widened to Rs 188.5 crore due to ESOP expenses.

D2C electronics brand boAt made a successful turnaround, posting a net profit of Rs 60 crore in FY25 after a Rs 74 crore loss the previous year. With Rs 3,098 crore in total revenue, the company is now gearing up for a Rs 2,000 crore IPO, becoming the first Indian D2C electronics brand to go public.

Online travel aggregator Cleartrip (owned by Flipkart) saw operating revenue rise 70% to Rs 169.3 crore in FY25, narrowing its losses by 20% to Rs 651 crore. However, this came at the cost of Rs 608.2 crore spent on discounts and cashbacks. Still, Cleartrip improved efficiency, reducing its spend from Rs 10 to Rs 5.23 per rupee earned.

Zerodha, India’s largest stockbroker, saw a 40% year-on-year revenue decline in Q1 FY26 due to higher STT on options and reduced retail trading activity. Despite the drop, Zerodha remains highly profitable, maintaining its position as India’s second-largest broker with 7.26 million active clients.

Leadership, Strategy, and Regulatory Updates

Edtech giant Allen Career Institute appointed Rakesh Ranjan, ex-CEO of Zomato’s delivery business, as CEO of Allen Online. Under his leadership, Allen aims to scale AI-based assessments and digital pedagogy to handle over one million learner interactions per month. The move follows FY24 results showing 42% revenue growth to Rs 3,244.7 crore, despite profit dipping to Rs 136 crore.

Food delivery platform Swiggy sold its 12% stake in Rapido for Rs 2,399.5 crore, achieving a 2.3X return on investment. The divestment aims to reduce conflicts of interest as Rapido expands into food delivery. Swiggy also transferred Instamart into a wholly-owned subsidiary to streamline quick commerce operations.

In regulatory news, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) announced the Authentication Mechanisms for Digital Payment Transactions Directions, 2025, effective April 1, 2026. The new framework mandates two-factor authentication for every transaction, incorporating dynamic factors such as biometrics, device-based tokens, or passphrases. Issuers will be fully liable for any customer losses resulting from weak authentication systems.

Edtech and Fintech Leadership Movements

Stock trading platform Dhan appointed Ketan Shah as CEO of its Omni Channel Business. With 25 years of experience, including as Chief Strategy Officer at Angel One, Shah will lead Dhan’s hybrid financial services expansion. The platform currently holds 2.15% market share with over 1 million active clients.

Edtech unicorn Unacademy promoted Sumit Jain, co-founder of its subsidiary Graphy, to CEO of its Test Prep division. Jain is credited with improving profitability and learner experience, helping Unacademy cut its losses by 62% to Rs 631 crore in FY24 and lower its annual cash burn to under Rs 200 crore.

EV Market Shake-Up

The Indian electric two-wheeler (E2W) segment saw dynamic shifts in September. Ather Energy overtook Ola Electric, selling 18,109 units and capturing a 17.4% market share. TVS Motor led the charts with 22,481 registrations, while Bajaj reclaimed second place with 19,519 units. Ola, once dominant, fell to fourth position with 13,371 units, marking a 30% month-on-month decline, reflecting intensifying market competition.

Conclusion

The past week's activity underscores a market at a critical inflection point, simultaneously celebrating financial maturity and navigating intense competitive pressures and regulatory shifts.

On one hand, the financial reports highlight a clear path toward sustainable operations for market leaders: Ultrahuman’s 5X revenue surge led to its first net profit, and PhonePe showcased its core profitability potential, revealing an adjusted profit of Rs 630 crore after excluding ESOP costs. Furthermore, boAt returned to profitability ahead of its IPO, posting a net profit of Rs 60 crore in FY25. This focus on unit economics and controlled costs, as also seen in Coding Ninjas reducing its losses by 41%, signals a move away from pure growth at any cost.

On the other hand, the ecosystem saw strategic shifts in response to market volatility. Swiggy successfully executed a timely exit from Rapido, securing a 2.5X return and creating a focused subsidiary for its quick commerce vertical. IPO momentum continues, with Infra.Market and Purple Style Labs filing their DRHPs, utilizing the stock market to bulk up funding numbers. However, the fragility of certain segments was evident as Zerodha reported a sharp 40% drop in brokerage revenues due to regulatory changes and reduced retail trading activity.

Crucially, the continued influx of capital for AI platforms like Emergent and Rocket, alongside investment in Chakr Innovation’s deep cleantech R&D, demonstrates strong investor conviction in differentiated technology. Yet, this high-growth environment is coming at a price: the trend of heavy founder dilution by Series A, as noted in the case of Rocket, reflects founders prioritizing a longer financial runway during times of greater uncertainty.

Ultimately, this period is adding resilience and enterprise to the operations of intrinsically strong models. As the RBI mandates stronger, multi-factor authentication for digital payments and competition intensifies in every sector (from E2Ws where Ather surpassed Ola to luxury retail where PSL adapts its AOV), success hinges on founders who understand that they must actively "make things happen" to cross over into the holy land of institutional funding and long-term viability.

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