[Weekly funding roundup Aug 29-Sept 2] Venture capital inflow into Indian startups remains subdued

The month of September started on a subdued note for the Indian startup ecosystem as venture capital inflow dropped marginally on a comparative basis.

The first week of September saw total venture funding of $199 million, cutting across 21 deals, compared to the previous week, where the venture capital inflow stood at $260 million.

Startup funding deals of EarlySalary and Skyroot Aerospace provided a boost during the week, where notable global private equity players like TPG and GIC participated, generally associated with large funding rounds.

Although it is soon to say whether there will be increased participation from private equity players, however, their bets show their long-term commitment.

Meanwhile, the overall market does not ring bells of optimism, given the hawkish tone of the US Federal Reserve that strongly indicated that it would continue to increase rates to bring down inflation levels, which would mean lesser liquidity in the system, resulting in lower fund inflow into startups.

The only question remains, how long will this funding winter last?

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Fintech startup EarlySalary raised $110 million in a Series D round from TPG’s The Rise Fund, Norwest Venture Partners, Piramal Capital, and Housing Finance Limited.

Skyroot Aerospace, a spacetech startup, raised $51 million (Rs 403 crore) in a Series B round from GIC and other prominent angel investors.

Bike Bazaar, a two-wheeler services startup, raised Rs 170 crore as part of its Series D funding round from Women’s World Banking Asset Management, Elevar Equity, and Faering Capital.

Metalbook, a B2B startup for the metals industry, raised a seed round worth $5 million from Axilor Ventures, Foundamental, RTP Global, Stride Ventures, and a few angel investors.