In this week’s new funding rounds, three Indian startups, Herkey (formerly JobsForHer), BeYoung, and Niro, have raised a total of $15 million in their latest funding rounds. Career engagement platform for women, Herkey, raised $4 million from Kalaari and 360 ONE Asset. Fashion ecommerce brand, BeYoung, secured Rs 40 crore from revenue-based financing startup Klub, and embedded lending platform, Niro, closed its Series A round of Rs 90 crore ($11 million) with a mix of equity and debt funding from a consortium of investors including Elevar Equity, GMO Venture Partners, Rebright Partners, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance VC, and others.
Herkey, which currently serves 3.5 million women and has over 10,000 companies enrolled for the platform, plans to use the funding to continue its mission of increasing the participation of women in the workforce. BeYoung, involved in the manufacturing and sales of apparel and accessories for people between the ages of 16 and 45 years, will use the freshly raised funds for geographical expansion, technology upgrades, marketing efforts, and logistics improvements.
Neha Bagaria, founder of Herkey, believes that increasing participation of women in the workforce is a crucial aspect of India’s economic ascent in the coming decade. HerKey’s digital platform helps women to exchange diverse knowledge, perspectives, and interact without being constrained by time and location. With this funding, Herkey plans to enhance its technology platform to further connect women with companies looking to engage with female candidates. Similarly, BeYoung intends to use the freshly raised funds for geographical expansion, technology upgrades, marketing efforts, and logistics improvements.
Meanwhile, Niro’s embedded lending platform for consumer internet platforms will leverage the funding to drive engagement and create value for the end consumers, in turn leading to revenue growth.
Niro’s embedded lending platform aims to create value for end consumers, driving revenue growth for consumer internet platforms by providing customised credit offerings. With the latest funding round, the startup plans to scale its operations and expand its reach to more platform partners and lenders. Aditya Kumar, Co-founder, and CEO of Niro, expressed gratitude to Elevar for their continued support and welcomed GMO, Rebright Partners, MSIVC, Venture Catalysts, and YAN to their journey. The funding will help Niro to continue delivering value to its platform partners, lenders, and ultimately, end consumers.
New Funding Rounds highlight increasing interests from investors in vertical startups
According to a release shared by BeYoung, the fashion ecommerce startup’s monthly recurring revenue has jumped 3x, recording an annualized revenue of Rs 150 crore. Beyoung aims to touch Rs 500 crore in ARR by the end of 2026. On the other hand, Niro’s co-founder and CEO, Aditya Kumar, expressed gratitude for the continued support of Elevar Equity and excitement in welcoming GMO, Rebright Partners, MSIVC, Venture Catalysts, and YAN to their journey. Niro strives to deliver value for its platform partners, lenders, and ultimately, end consumers.
The funding round of Herkey was led by Kalaari and 360 ONE Asset (earlier known as IIFL Asset Management), while Niro’s Series A round of Rs 90 crore ($11 million) was closed through a mix of equity and debt funding. Elevar Equity, GMO Venture Partners, Rebright Partners, Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance VC, InnoVen Capital, and others were among the investors in Niro’s equity and debt funding.
The new funding rounds of these startups highlight the increasing interest of investors in startups that focus on empowering women, providing innovative solutions for consumer lending, and catering to the rising demand for affordable and trendy fashion in India.
