Deal Street: Treebo Hotels Raises $34 Million, Existing Investors Back Curefit 

Bengaluru-based startups led the funding pack last week as four startups mopped up more than half of the total amount raised.

Six startups raised nearly $100 million in angel, seed or venture capital funding, across areas such as travel, photography, health and fitness. That compares with nearly $165 million raised the week before by same number of startups.

Treebo Hotels Raises $34 Million

Budget hotel chain Treebo Hotels raised $34 million in its fresh round of funding led by Hong Kong-based investment firms Ward Ferry Management and Karst Peak Capital.

Existing investors SAIF Partners, Matrix Partners India, and Bertelsmann India Investments also participated in the round, the company said in a statement

The Bangalore-based hotel chain operator will use the proceeds to enhance customer experience, strengthen its technology team, and expand footprint in existing and new cities.

“We have several breakthrough initiatives in the offing to further enhance the experience we offer to our guests, and the value we create for our franchise partners. This new capital will allow us to invest in these endeavors,” Rahul Chaudhary, co-founder of Treebo Hotels, said.

Treebo works with new and existing hotels on a franchise model where it offers its brand name, quality oversight, access to leading vendors, staff training, and sales and marketing expertise to the property.

It had last raised Rs 112 crore ($16.7 million) last year in its Series B funding round led by Bertelsmann India Investments, the strategic investment arm of international media company,Bertelsmann

Diagnostics Firm Medegenome Backed By Belgian Investment Firm

Bengaluru-based genomics-based diagnostics and research firm MedGenome Labs Pvt. Ltd raised $30 million (Rs 192 crore) in a Series C round led by existing investor Sequoia Capital and new Belgium-based investment firm Sofina SA.

The round also saw the participation from existing investor Zodius Capital, the company said. Infosys co-founder and former CEO Kris Gopalakrishnan and former Cognizant CEO Lakshmi Narayanan, too, participated in the round in their individual capacities.

The company said the funds will be used to fast track the development of its affordable diagnostics tests, besides raising awareness about the importance of genetic tests. The funds will also be used to broaden biomarker discovery programmes.

“MedGenome has established leadership in genetic diagnostics for inherited diseases in India. We will now expand DNA-based testing to cover infectious diseases, including tuberculosis,” said Sam Santhosh, founder and chairman, MedGenome.

Health And Fitness Startup Curefit Raises $25 Million

Health and fitness startup CureFit, founded by Myntra co-founder Mukesh Bansal and former Flipkart executive Ankit Nagori, raised $25 million (Rs 160 crore) in Series B funding.

Existing investors Accel Partners, IDG Ventures, Kalaari Capital and UC-RNT Fund, a joint venture between Ratan Tata’s RNT Associates and University of California, also participated, it said in a statement.

The company will use the funds to strengthen its technology platform and expand geographical footprint. It will set up shop in Gurgaon by the end of this year and expand to two other cities in 2018.

The latest funding round takes the total capital raised by the company to $45 million. Las month it had announced a Rs 100-crore endorsement deal with Hrithik Roshan, which saw the Bollywood star pick up an equity stake in the company.

Restaurant Solutions Provider Mobikon Raises $7 Million

Restaurant marketing and analytics platform Mobikon raised $7 million (around Rs 44.7 crore) in Series B funding from Sistema Asia Fund, C31 Ventures and Qualgro.

Pune and Singapore-based Mobikon’s existing investors Jungle Ventures and Spring Singapore also participated in the round, the company said in a statement.

The company plans to invest the capital on scaling up its business in India, Southeast Asia and Middle East, and is looking to penetrate deeper into its existing markets like India, the United Arab Emirates, Philippines and Singapore. It also wants to expand into new markets like the U.K. and Australia in the coming 18 months.

Mobikon, a customer engagement and marketing platform for the food and beverages industry, offers customer engagement, marketing, analytics and business tools on a single platform. Its proprietary platform mEngage provides restaurants with customer data including ordering, reservations, feedback, payments, social media, website and marketing channels.

Currently present in six countries, Mobikon claims to work with 700 restaurant brands with over 3,400 outlets globally. It wants to double the number of restaurants on its platform over the next one year.

Others

Bengaluru-based online photography startup Canvera raised $3 million (Rs 20 crore) led by existing investor Info Edge (India) Ltd, Naukri.com’s parent. Info Edge pumped in Rs 17.3 crores and while the remaining came from new investors and certain existing investors, it said in a stock market disclosure.

Doxper, an app that helps doctors maintain patients’ medical records, raised $750,000 (Rs 4.8 crore approximately) in its seed round of investment led by Vidal Healthcare and GrowX Ventures, a company statement said.