Indian digital funds agency PhonePe mentioned on Friday it has raised $200 million (roughly Rs. 1,650 crore) from majority backer Walmart at a pre-money valuation of $12 billion (roughly Rs. 98,997 crore).
PhonePe, already India’s most precious funds agency and among the many nation’s most highly-valued startups, mentioned the funding is a part of its ongoing fundraise of as much as $1 billion (roughly Rs. 8,249 crore).
It has raised $350 million (roughly Rs. 2,887 crore) from personal fairness agency General Atlantic and $100 million (roughly Rs. 824 crore) from Ribbit Capital, Tiger Global and TVS Capital Funds previously two months, at the identical $12 billion valuation. “PhonePe started its latest fundraise with a target of raising up to $1 billion in capital, post its domicile shift to India,” PhonePe said earlier this week. “With this second tranche, it has already raised $450 million (roughly Rs. 3,800 crore) within six weeks from leading investors. The company expects further investments from leading global, as well as prominent high net worth Indian investors in due course,” it mentioned in an announcement.
American retail behemoth Walmart, which acquired a majority share in PhonePe in 2018, will proceed as a majority investor, the Indian firm mentioned, with out disclosing its stake.
Despite a funding winter, the Indian digital funds area has been a vibrant spot because of the recognition of on-line funds and startups’ ambitions to department into the profitable monetary providers area.
PhonePe mentioned it plans to deploy these funds to construct and scale new companies together with insurance coverage, wealth administration and lending.
PhonePe separated from Indian e-commerce big Flipkart late final 12 months, when it additionally shifted its registered headquarters from Singapore to India, with Walmart selecting up the practically $1 billion tax invoice for the transfer.
The relocation, based on some experiences, was to make sure a better entry into the nation’s highly-regulated monetary providers trade, particularly lending.
© Thomson Reuters 2023
