BENGALURU: EV ride-hailing service provider BluSmart has raised about Rs 200 crore ($24 million) in a pre-Series B funding round that saw participation from MS Dhoni Family Office, ResponsAbility Investment and Sumant Sinha (global leader in the Renewable Energy sector), among others.
This fundraising round will support the company in expanding its operations and building EV charging infrastructure and assets across the country.
Founded in 2019, BluSmart operates in Delhi NCR and Bengaluru and made its international foray with the launch in Dubai in June 2024 as a premium all-electric limousine service.
Former Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni (MS Dhoni Family Office) in a statement said, “Investing in BluSmart’s sustainable business model is not just about supporting a company; it's about being part of a movement that shapes the future of mobility."
The company operates 50 EV charging hubs spread across 2 million sq feet. It has recently crossed Rs 550 crore ARR ($65 million Annual Revenue Run-rate).
Meanwhile, Yali Capital on Monday announced the launch of its Rs 810 crore (including a Rs 310 crore greenshoe option) venture fund. The fund, co-founded by Ganapathy Subramaniam, former CEO of Cosmic Circuits, and Mathew Cyriac, Executive Chairman of Florintree, will support early-stage deep tech start-ups in India, Yali Capital said at an event in Bengaluru.
It aims to invest in innovative areas such as chip design, robotics, genomics, smart manufacturing, aerospace, AI and other such sectors with deep tech as its base.
“We believe India is inherently strong in deep tech. As a country, we have 40 years of high-quality chip design experience. India is also very strong in robotics and is now gaining ground in genomics, smart manufacturing, etc.," said Ganapathy Subramaniam, Founding Managing Partner of Yali Capital.
"I see strong opportunities in homegrown deep tech companies in sectors such as aerospace, imaging, instrumentations and several other emerging areas," Mathew Cyriac, Founding General Partner of Yali Capital, said.
Yali Capital has already approved investments in four deep tech companies and expects to complete these investments by the third quarter of 2024.