Why Offline Payments Still Matter in India’s Digital Push While India’s digital payments ecosystem is often associated with online checkouts and UPI apps, a large share of merchant transactions still happen at physical counters. For small retailers, restaurants, and SMBs, reliable in-store payment acceptance remains critical, especially across semi-urban and underserved regions where offline-first commerce dominates. What the RBI Authorisation Enables Goa-based payment aggregator InstiFi has received authorisation from the Reserve Bank of India to operate as an offline payment aggregator, effective January 8, 2026. The approval allows the company to offer Point-of-Sale (POS) terminals and Sound Box–enabled static QR…
Author: Aman Atulya
Why Interest-Led Social Platforms Are Gaining Relevance India’s social media landscape is increasingly shaped by fatigue around algorithm-heavy feeds and low-trust interactions. As users seek smaller, purpose-driven communities, interest-led and safety-first platforms are emerging as a counter-trend to mass-scale social networks. What the Funding Round Signals Hyderabad-based social networking startup Culture has raised ₹2 crore in a seed funding round led by Acuvest Infra. The capital will be deployed toward accelerating product development, expanding community initiatives, and strengthening safety-focused platform infrastructure, the company said. Inside Culture’s Product and Vision Founded by Anurag Rangineni, Culture enables users to connect through Artificial…
Why India’s Craft Beer Market Is Attracting Focused Capital India’s craft beer and microbrewery sector is moving from experimental formats to scalable hospitality businesses. With urban consumption rising and premium experiences gaining traction, investors are increasingly backing differentiated brewery concepts rather than traditional bar-led models. What the Funding Round Covers Bengaluru-based microbrewery 33&Brew has raised ₹20 crore ($2.2 million) in a Series A funding round led by Optimistic Capital. The proceeds will be used for construction and expansion, as the company looks to deepen its physical footprint in the city. The funding comes from Optimistic Capital’s recently announced ₹200 crore…
Why State-Led Capital Is Gaining Importance in India India’s startup ecosystem is entering a phase where state-led capital support is becoming as critical as private venture funding. As funding cycles tighten and early-stage capital becomes harder to access, state governments are stepping in to de-risk innovation and broaden founder participation beyond metro-heavy, VC-driven ecosystems. What the Karnataka Government Announced Against this backdrop, the Karnataka government has awarded grants to 146 startups under its flagship ELEVATE programme, committing a total of ₹38 crore in non-dilutive funding. The beneficiaries include 103 startups under Elevate 2025, 33 startups selected under Elevate Unnati for…
India’s D2C Accessories Market Is Broadening Beyond Jewellery India’s D2C fashion and accessories market is evolving from single-category brands to multi-category lifestyle platforms. As online discovery improves and quick commerce shortens delivery cycles, affordable accessories are seeing demand not just in metros but across Tier II and III markets. This shift is pushing brands to invest in distribution depth, faster fulfilment, and offline touchpoints. Funding Snapshot and Expansion Focus D2C accessories brand Salty has raised ₹30.1 crore (around $3.6 million) in a fresh funding round led by MG Investment. Existing investors Anicut Capital, All In Capital, and JK Group, along…
India’s MFD-Led Wealth Distribution Is Going Digital India’s wealth-tech ecosystem is seeing a quiet but meaningful shift. While direct investing platforms dominate headlines, a large share of retail wealth continues to flow through Mutual Fund Distributors (MFDs). As compliance tightens and investor expectations rise, MFDs are increasingly adopting full-stack digital platforms to manage scale, advisory quality, and portfolio complexity. Funding Snapshot and Investor Backing Chennai-based AssetPlus has raised ₹175 crore (approximately $19.3 million) in a funding round led by Nexus Venture Partners, with participation from existing investors Eight Roads Ventures and Rainmatter Fund.The company had earlier raised $12.9 million from…
Reliance Retail’s quick commerce arm emerges as India’s second-largest by volume Reliance Retail’s quick commerce platform JioMart recorded a daily order run rate of 1.6 million orders by the end of December 2025, marking a sharp acceleration during the October–December quarter, according to the company’s Q3 FY26 investor presentation. The run rate reflects a 53% quarter-on-quarter jump and over 360% year-on-year growth in average daily orders, underlining JioMart’s aggressive scale-up in India’s fast-growing quick commerce segment. Market position strengthens Based on disclosed volumes, Reliance said JioMart has become India’s second-largest quick commerce player by order volume, trailing Blinkit, which averaged…
Mukesh Ambani-led FMCG arm sharpens beauty and personal care push Reliance Industries’ FMCG subsidiary, Reliance Consumer Products Ltd (RCPL), has acquired the global rights to four international personal care brands—Brylcreem, Toni & Guy, Badedas, and Matey—the company disclosed alongside its results for the quarter ended December 31, 2026. RCPL did not disclose the financial terms of the transactions. The company said it plans to expand these heritage brands in India while scaling their presence across select international markets, with a few territories excluded. Building a global beauty and grooming portfolio According to Reliance, the acquisitions span key grooming and bathing…
‘Samagra Plus’ honoured for excellence in e-learning and digital education Kerala’s educational AI platform ‘Samagra Plus’, developed by the Kerala Infrastructure and Technology for Education (KITE), has received prestigious national recognition for its contribution to digital learning and assessment, according to an official statement. The platform was honoured at the 6th Governance Now Digital Transformation Summit held in New Delhi, where it won the award in the “Excellence in e-learning, Assessment and Digital Education Platform” category. What makes Samagra Plus stand out ‘Samagra Plus’ uses artificial intelligence to personalise learning for students by adapting content to each learner’s pace and…
Project to remove over 2 million tonnes of CO₂ while supporting smallholder farmers Varaha, a carbon dioxide removal (CDR) project developer working with smallholder farmers across Asia, has entered into a partnership with Microsoft to scale biochar-based carbon removal in India. Long-term carbon removal infrastructure Under the agreement, Varaha will develop 18 industrial biomass gasification reactors that will operate over a 15-year period, with a projected carbon removal volume of more than 2 million tonnes of CO₂ across the project’s lifetime. The reactors will be deployed across India’s cotton-growing regions, starting with Maharashtra. Turning farm waste into permanent carbon storage…