Agriculture
Indian drone start-up Garuda Aerospace raises $22m
Recently established Indian VC firm SphitiCap has led a USD 22m Series A round for Garuda Aerospace, a local industrial drone maker and related services provider.
Inconfin closes India impact fund on $77m
Incofin Investment Management, a Belgium-headquartered impact investor, has reached a final close of USD 77m on a fund that will target financial inclusion and agri-food in India.
Deal focus: EdenFarm rethinks Indonesian agriculture
EdenFarm is tackling Indonesia’s fragmented agribusiness space with a B2B fresh produce marketplace that not only helps distribute crops, but helps them grow in the first place
TMI Ventures leads $13.5m round for Indonesia's EdenFarm
Indonesian agriculture technology start-up EdenFarm has raised a USD 13.5m round led by TMI Ventures, the investment arm of local wireless network operator Telkomsel.
ResponsAbility hits $173m first close on Asia food fund
Swiss impact investor ResponsAbility has reached a first close of USD 173m for a South and Southeast Asia-focused sustainable food private equity fund. The target is USD 400m.
Norwegian climate fund backs India waste-to-energy player
A climate fund set up by Norwegian development finance institution Norfund has invested NOK 600m (USD 60.5m) in Indian solar and waste-to-energy company SEAL.
India agtech start-up DeHaat closes Series E on $60m
DeHaat, which claims to be India’s largest full-stack agricultural technology platform, has closed its Series E round on USD 60m. Sofina and Temasek Holdings were the lead investors.
Proterra raises $200m for Asia food fund
Proterra Investment Partners has reached a final close on a Singapore-domiciled fund that will make food-related investments across Asia with more than USD 200m in commitments.
Roc leads Series B for Australia carbon credits specialist
Australia’s Roc Partners has led a AUD 55m (USD 35.6m) Series B round for local carbon credits platform and sustainability advisory Viridios Group.
Sofina leads $46m round for India agtech player DeHaat
Sofina, a Belgium-headquartered holding company and an active investor in Asia-based start-ups, has led a INR 3.66bn (USD 45.8m) Series E round for Indian agricultural technology platform DeHaat at a valuation of USD 695m.
PE investors commit $500m to India agribusiness giant UPL
India-headquartered UPL, which claims to be the world’s fifth-largest agrochemicals company, has announced a restructuring that will see KKR, TPG, Brookfield Asset Management, and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) invest INR 40.4bn (USD 500m) across...
Australia's AgriWebb upsizes Series B to $29m
AgriWebb, an Australia-based livestock management app used by farmers and ranchers, has closed its Series B round at USD 29.3m, following a USD 6.7m top-up featuring two new investors.
East leads $26m Series A for Indonesia agtech start-up
East Ventures has led a USD 26m Series A round for Indonesia’s Gokomodo, an agriculture technology provider focused on simplifying fragmented and inefficient supply chains.
GrowX team seeks $100m for spinout India VC fund
The team behind Indian angel investor GrowX Ventures has launched a separate fund targeting USD 100m under the name Merak Ventures.
India rural fintech player Jai Kisan raises $50m
India’s Jai Kisan, a financial technology start-up focused on digital banking in rural areas, has raised USD 50m in Series B funding from a group including DG Daiwa Ventures and Blume Ventures.
India seaweed biotech start-up raises $18.5m
India’s Sea6 Energy, a company that cultivates and processes seaweed to make a range of bio-engineered products, has completed a USD 18.5m Series B round featuring BASF Venture Capital.
Asia agtech: Work in progress
Global food supply issues and local economic realities are driving more capital into Asia’s agricultural technology space, where business models – from marketplaces to deep-tech – are still being proven
Omnivore exits India agtech player Eruvaka
Indian agriculture technology specialist Omnivore Partners claims to have achieved the country’s largest exit in the sector to date with the sale of aquaculture start-up Eruvaka to Dutch strategic Nutreco.
Deal focus: Prosus looks to aggregate India’s fruit farmers
B2B marketplaces are the prevalent theme in Prosus Ventures’ agricultural technology investments in Asia. However, as fruit specialist Vegrow demonstrates, supply chain dynamics are not uniform
Indonesia B2B agriculture marketplace gets $35m Series A
AgriAku, an Indonesia-based B2B marketplace that looks to improve agriculture supply chain efficiency for retailers of agricultural inputs, has raised USD 35m in Series A funding led by Alpha JWC Ventures.
Prosus leads $25m Series B for India's Vegrow
Prosus Ventures, a technology investment business controlled by Naspers, has led a USD 25m Series B round for Vegrow, an India-based marketplace that helps farmers sell their fruit crops into organised distribution channels.
Franklin Templeton strengthens Asia PE coverage of agri-food
Franklin Templeton has appointed Patrick Vizzone as a managing director and head of agri-food for its Asia Pacific alternatives group. He will lead PE and VC investments in the space globally.
India D2C food brand Country Delight gets $108m Series D
India’s Country Delight, a direct-to-consumer (D2C) food brand best known for farm-fresh milk, has raised USD 108m in Series D funding led by Singapore’s Venturi Partners and Temasek Holdings.
Australian crop monitoring start-up gets $38m Series B
Regrow, an Australian-based sustainable agriculture start-up, has raised USD 38m in Series B funding led by Galvanize Climate Solutions, Rethink Impact, and Salesforce.com CEO Marc Benioff’s Time Ventures.