1947 Tech 🇮🇳: 160

India tech ecosystem is on 🔥

Jul 07, 2021

Abhinav Sinha, COO of Oyo (10$b) said typically a startup ecosystem goes through a 30–40 year life cycle.

And India is only in its second decade. In other words, it has just started.

Bunch of IPOs on the short-term road map, healthy exits, ESPOs buybacks, repeat founders, founders getting funded by experienced founders.

Man, I’m excited!!

1. Pine Labs closes latest fundraise at $600 million, eyes US listing

Digital payments service provider Pine Labs raised $315 million in capital as part of its ongoing fundraise and closed its current funding round at $600 million

The latest transaction values Pine Labs at $3 billion. The funding comes a month after the startup announced that it raised $285 million in primary and secondary equity sales from public market investors, including Baron Capital Group, Duro Capital, Marshall Wace, Moore Strategic Ventures and Ward Ferry Management.

With this fundraise, the company is looking to list in the US markets in the next 18 months.

Pine Labs closes latest fundraise at $600 million, eyes US listing

2. Swedish gaming firm MTG acquires India’s PlaySimple for $360 million

The type of exit we need!

Swedish gaming giant Modern Times Group (MTG) has acquired Indian startup PlaySimple for at least $360 million, the two firms said Friday.

MTG said it will pay 77% of the acquisition sum to Indian game developer and publisher in cash and the rest in company shares. There’s also another $150 million reward put aside if certain undisclosed performance metrics are hit, the two firms said.

Friday’s deal marks one of the largest exits in the Indian startup ecosystem. PlaySimple had raised $4 million Series A at a valuation of about $16 million from Elevation Capital and Chiratae Ventures in 2016. (The startup, which began its journey in Bangalore, raised just $4.5 million in total from external investors.