Fitso Raises $1.5 Mn in Funding from SRI Capital, Pankaj Chaddah, Ashish Gupta and more

India’s leading full-stack sports facilities provider, Fitso raised $ 1.5 million in pre-series A funding from a group of investors including SRI Capital, Sprout Capital, IPV Capital, Pankaj Chaddah (Co-founder, Zomato), Ashish Gupta (Co-founder, Helion Venture Partners)

With this fundraise, Fitso will increase the numbers of indoor all-weather swimming pools. It will invest in expansion, good talent and technology to boost the operations.

Fitness has always been an integral part of Indian culture and sports is the best way of being fit. Supporting Honorable Prime Minister- Shri Narendra Modi’s Fit India movement, Fitso is encouraging People to make the best use of technology to stay fit and healthy.

Fitso is full-stack sports facilities provider which is bringing health and happiness to people's lives through sports. Fitso’s primary product SEALs offers coaching and access to all-weather swimming pools in Delhi-NCR through the year and has now been launched in Hyderabad as well. Fitso also provides multiple new sports programs for Badminton, Tennis and others which have been very well received. It is planning to launch an All-in-One pass to provide its subscribers access to all of its facilities across sports.

“As the name suggests, Fitso’- “Fitness with Sports” sets us apart from the other players in the industry who are focused on fitness through workouts with expensive equipment and are venue oriented. We found a gap in an unorganized and conventional sports segment. To fill that gap, we are making fitness accessible and affordable using technology for people who want to play sports to get fit, by eliminating the need for a gym membership or expensive equipment. We focus on providing a facility to play sport under the guidance of a qualified coach. Fitso has seen families buy a Fitso subscription together. We plan to become the biggest brand name in the sports-oriented fitness segment” said Naman Sharma, Co-founder Fitso.

The overall fitness industry is estimated to be $ 12 bn in 2018 as per a Redseer report. This is projected to increase at 18% CAGR to $ 32 bn by 2022, of which recreational sports will contribute $ 20 bn. This growth will be driven by an increase in the number of Health Conscious Individuals, estimated at 90 mn in 2018 and projected to increase to 130 mn by 2022. Fitso stands apart with its unique full-stack model to provide a quality experience in sports. Compared to workouts, sports are more recreational, allows learning a new skill set and long term in nature.

In 2015 Saurabh Aggarwal, an ex-Flipkart employee and IIT Delhi graduate, teamed up with his friends and IIT batchmates Naman Sharma ex- Zomato employee and Rahool Sureka ex- Yepme and UrbanClap to launch Fitso.

Shweta Singh, Principal at SRI Capital said, “There is a gap in demand for sports facilities among people of all age groups and supply of good quality facilities. There is a latent demand for a service like Fitso which takes the hassle away from engaging in sports. Fitso is making sports accessible to all.

Pankaj Chaddha, Founder of Zomato said, "India as a nation increasingly becoming more health and fitness conscious. We need startups like Fitso to make sports more accessible to people."

Sports are hugely under-served in India - many people want to play, but cannot due to substandard management of facilities and non-market ready coaches which lead to an unsatisfactory experience. Fitso solves these problems by taking over and standardizing the facilities, implementing best practices in facility management using tech and providing highly trained coaches for great user experience. Fitso started with swimming and now has 20,000+ happy subscribers in Delhi NCR.

Fitso started in August 2015 and they have been on a roller coaster ride ever since. From its beginning as a running/cycling partner finding an app to a complete fitness solution along with personal coaches, to their current avatar where they are a full-stack sports experience provider, they are exploring the endless opportunities on this road while at the same time they are sticking to their core value of making people fit. Fitso was founded by 3 IIT Delhi alumni - Naman Sharma(ex- Zomato), Rahool Sureka (ex- UrbanClap, YepMe), Saurabh Agarwal (ex- Flipkart and Ironman Finisher).

IIIT Hyderabad Alumni Startup 'DreamVu' Building Omni-Stereo Camera Tech Raises Funds from SRI Capital

California and Hyderabad-based deep technology startup DreamVu Inc. has raised an undisclosed amount in a strategic funding from SRI Capital, an early stage venture capital firm of veteran entrepreneur Sashi Parvatha Reddi.

Founded in 2017 by Rajat Aggarwal and Rohan Bhatial, who are both graduates from International Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), Hyderabad, DreamVu has developed the world's first omni-stereo camera hardware and software platform for unifying human and machine vision, which means a platform for both human and machine vision.

The startup will use the freshly raised capital to innovate further and also in taking its products to the early adopters as development kits and also use funds for fulfilling its vision of enabling futuristic capturing technologies such as in autonomous machines. In order to disrupt the autonomous guided robotics landscape the startup is selling to and partnering with system integrators worldwide.

The startup has developed a power and cost-efficient omni-directional camera platform inspired by human binocular vision and perception. It helps in providing augmented navigation capabilities and a full scene-understanding of unconfined and dynamic environments to autonomous robots.

The start was also a part of AVISHKAR Deep Tech Accelerator, a DeepTech early stage accelerator at IIIT-Hyderabad Foundation.

DreamVu platform's 7D output enables live VR streaming and preview, seamless localization and mapping, and object tracking to name a few. We capture 4D light field function into a single sensor, which simplifies the processing pipeline.

[caption id="attachment_127534" align="aligncenter" width="732"] PAL - A 3 360° depth sensor developed by DreamVu
[Image - dreamvu.com/][/caption]

The startup aims to revolutionize the way reality is being captured with by applying its its camera technology in a wide range of verticals including VR, AR to autonomous machines (vehicles, drones and robots) to smart invasive systems.

Jay Krishnan, partner at SRI Capital, said, "SRI Capital is committed to backing startups with IP in areas that form the frontiers of new technologies. We were thrilled to see DreamVu’s solution with an optics- first approach that allows sensors and optics to disrupt value chains long powered by electronics and software. DreamVu is well positioned to transform the autonomous guided space with its product- portfolio and stellar backing through its advisers, investors and the operating team."

Krishnan, who was earlier the CEO at T-Hub, the largest startup accelerator in Hyderabad, has recently joined SRI Capital in October.

"We are privileged to have partnered with a startup born here in Hyderabad and formed by young and ingenious entrepreneurs. We are positive that the value we provide in addition to this investment will significantly accelerate DreamVu’s growth curve in new markets," added Jay Krishnan.

DreamVu is the second firm from IIIT-Hyderabad in which SRI Capital has invested. SRI Capital had launched its maiden $100 million technology focused fund in July to invest in startups in US and India. In the last five years, SRI Capital has invested in 36 startups.

[Top Featured Image - Facebook.com/dreamvu.inc/]

Source - Telangana Today

SRI Capital Roped in Former T-Hub CEO Jay Krishnan as Partner in its India Unit

SRI Capital, a leading early stage VC fund focussed on US and Indian startups, has roped in CEO of Hyderabad-based startup incubator T-Hub, Jay Krishnan, as a Partner in its Indian advisory entity.

The news was announced by Sashi Reddy, founder and managing director of SRI Capital to the media at a press conference on Thursday.

Krishnan, who is an almumnus of Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, has resigned from his position of CEO in T-Hub in April this year, citing personal reason. Krishnan is known for spearheading the emergence of T-Hub as the largest start-up incubator in India.

He was also the co-founder of Radifinity, an industrial IoT start-up that was acquired by the Aditya Birla Minacs in 2010 through an asset sale. Krishnan has also worked with Cisco and Juniper Networks in developing new product initiatives, in the enterprise and service provider space.

Commenting on his joining SRI Capital’s advisory team in India, Jay Krishnan said he was “excited by the immense untapped Unicorn potential in the Indian ecosystem that requires the specialised advise and the connects made possible by SRI Capital. SRI Capital’s and Sashi’s vision and passion reflect my personal belief and I look forward to adding a new dimension to the Indian success story”.

SRI Capital which has invested in over 15 startups in the past five years, has launched its maiden $100 million technology focused fund in July to invest in startups in US and India.

Speaking on the appointment, Sashi Reddi, founder and managing director, SRI Capital said, “Jay’s vast experience in the startup space and a proven track record as an entrepreneur makes him a clear representative of the values SRI Capital brings to the table. His understanding of the ecosystem and network both in India and globally is unparalleled."

SRI Capital Roped in Former T-Hub CEO Jay Krishnan as Partner in its India Unit

SRI Capital, a leading early stage VC fund focussed on US and Indian startups, has roped in CEO of Hyderabad-based startup incubator T-Hub, Jay Krishnan, as a Partner in its Indian advisory entity.

The news was announced by Sashi Reddy, founder and managing director of SRI Capital to the media at a press conference on Thursday.

Krishnan, who is an almumnus of Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, has resigned from his position of CEO in T-Hub in April this year, citing personal reason. Krishnan is known for spearheading the emergence of T-Hub as the largest start-up incubator in India.

He was also the co-founder of Radifinity, an industrial IoT start-up that was acquired by the Aditya Birla Minacs in 2010 through an asset sale. Krishnan has also worked with Cisco and Juniper Networks in developing new product initiatives, in the enterprise and service provider space.

Commenting on his joining SRI Capital’s advisory team in India, Jay Krishnan said he was “excited by the immense untapped Unicorn potential in the Indian ecosystem that requires the specialised advise and the connects made possible by SRI Capital. SRI Capital’s and Sashi’s vision and passion reflect my personal belief and I look forward to adding a new dimension to the Indian success story”.

SRI Capital which has invested in over 15 startups in the past five years, has launched its maiden $100 million technology focused fund in July to invest in startups in US and India.

Speaking on the appointment, Sashi Reddi, founder and managing director, SRI Capital said, “Jay’s vast experience in the startup space and a proven track record as an entrepreneur makes him a clear representative of the values SRI Capital brings to the table. His understanding of the ecosystem and network both in India and globally is unparalleled."

In A Rare, An Indian-Origin Entrepreneur Launches VC Fund of $100 Mn Corpus

Sashi Parvatha Reddi, a veteran entrepreneur and angel investor, has announced the launch of his first technology-focused early-stage venture capital fund - SRI Capital Fund-I, which can indeed be called as a rare instance where an entrepreneur has launched a fund.

Born in Madras (now Chennai), Reddi is a serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist as well as a philanthropist. He was the CEO and founder of AppLabs, a software testing company based out of Philadelphia, US, which was acquired by Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC) in September 2011. Prior to this, he also founded EZPower Systems, a web content management company, in 1994, which was too acquired in 1998 by DocuCorp, now a part of Oracle.

The newly launched SRI Capital Fund-I is a $100-million (~ Rs 688 crore) investment vehicle which will look to invest in enterprise software ventures, with a particular focus on startups working in the emerging areas of deep tech. The fund has just completed its first close at $40 million, and expects to have have its full corpus by the end of the first quarter of 2019, reported Economic Times.

The fund will invest at a pre-Series A stage with ticket size of $1-3 million, and going up to $5 million in select ventures.

"We focus on deep tech because if there is one sector that absolutely needs US market access, it is this,” Reddi told a business daily adding that, “Given our extensive network and relationships with CTOs and CEOs of large companies in the US, we can provide an immediate opportunity for startups to prove out their tech with buyers and partners quickly."

Notably, Reddi, who is an IIT-Delhi alumnus, has been an active investor in the Indian startup ecosystem, having backed an estimated 30 ventures, primarily in the enterprise technology space till date including e-commerce site Shopo, edtech venture Edutor and Gibss, a green energy startup.


The fund is launched at a time when angel and seed funding for startups at the idea and product-market-fit stage has seen a steep fall, dropping 45% to 112 deals in the March quarter due to the fact that fewer startups are formed in 2017-18.

The early stage startup funding saw worst days in four years, as in H1 2018, the deals in seed and angel investments reportedly continue to struggle with only $137.8 million invested in startups this year, against over $200 million in the first half (H1) of 2017.

Besides this, in March, an another known entrepreneur, Uber ousted Travis Kalanick announced his second inning with his new investment fund 10100, pronounced as “ten-one-hundred. The new fund will be for his personal investments in startups, for-profit and not-for-profit work.

[Top Image - wikipedia]

Datasigns Technologies Secures $1.5 Mn From SRI Capital, BeeNext, Others

Datasigns Technologies, a mobile first financial technology startup that operator of lending platform Shubh Loans has raised $1.5 million in pre-series-A funding from SRI Capital, BeeNext and Pravega Ventures. The firm plans to utilize freshly infused fund to grow its technology team and expand to 25 markets from seven.

Prior to this round, the company has raised an undisclosed amount of angel funding from Sanjai Vohra, former MD of JP Morgan, V Bunty Bohra, India CEO of Goldman Sachs, and Peeyush Misra, a former partner at Goldman Sachs.

Commenting on the development, Sashi Reddi, Founder, SRI Capital said, “Many massive companies are going to be built in this space, finally being able to lend to the next 200 million consumers ­ Shubh Loans will be one of them.” Reddi has earlier invested in enterprise SaaS companies including Identropy and Yellow Dig.

At $1.2 trillion, India is estimated to be one of the largest markets for consumer finance in the world, behind the US and China. It is also one of the least evolved markets for lending, with close to 70% of the market being underserved by institutional lenders. According to a report by international philanthropic investment firm Omidyar Network, over 400 million people borrowed money in India in 2014, but fewer than one in seven were approved for a formal loan. The ratio of consumer loans to GDP for India is at a low 11%, compared to countries like China which is close to 40%.

This show that the current credit system is not working for a large part of our population. Almost 400 million people are being excluded because of traditional and archaic ways of credit scoring.

According to the company website, Datasigns aims to democratize credit and make it available to all. Their technology platform, Shubh Loans is transforming consumer lending. It is doing so by busting the myths that it is hard to get data, difficult to store it and even tougher to use it. The platform help loan companies to make smarter credit decisions and to expand the availability of fair and transparent credit.

Founded in 2016 by Monish Anand, Rahul Sekar, Anand Barua and Tushar Patel, Shubh Loans is a vernacular language app that builds a proprietary credit score and report for loan applicants, who can then borrow from any of the nine banks and NBFCs on the platform.

“We are targeting people who do not have access to bank loans and bring them into the formal banking economy. Using the Shubh Loans app, users can apply for a loan of up to Rs 2 lakh for a maximum time of two years,” said Monish Anand, CEO of Shubh Loans.

The company claims that since its launch, over 60,000 customers have built their credit score using Shubh Loans. The platform further boasts to have a monthly growth rate of 50% and aims to bring over 10 lakh people into the formal banking system through its lending and credit-building product.

SRI Capital Invests $1.3M in Two SaaS Startups - Yellowdig & Zuppler

Seed-stage venture capital fund SRI Capital launched by serial entrepreneur Sashi Reddi, has invested $1.3 million in two SaaS startups - Yellowdig in Pune and Zuppler in Delhi. Till now, the fund has invested in 15 SaaS startups in his current portfolio of 23 companies.

He believes that enterprise software startups are going to be the new wave in the market. "We need to realise that the Amazon of India will be Amazon," said Sashi Reddi.

Yellowdig which is headquartered in US and based out of Pune, has created a course collaboration software that universities can use as a complement to their current learning management systems.

University of Pennsylvania, Northwestern and Duke University, among others, are already on its list of clientele.

"We are experiencing rapid growth of our SaaS platform in higher education in the US, and we see a lot of potential to grow in the adjacent K-12 and corporate e-learning markets," said Shaunak Roy, CEO of Yellowdig.

The raised funding will be used by the Yellowdig and Zuppler to scale up and roll out their products in global markets, as per ET report. Zuppler's software technology targets independent restaurant owners to help them streamline all the technologies through the Zuppler platform and take control of all their online customers.

Apart from this, Reddi has recently also invested about $1 million in Pune-based SaaS startup, WorkApps.