Thyrocare founder sets up ₹50 cr startup fund
The company is targeting acquisitions to strengthen its core business, including news and infotainment, shortvideo content and ad-tech. The acquisitions will be funded with a combination of cash and stock, Bedi said.
Citing Meta’s acquisition of Instagram
THE company has significant dry powder of over $100 mn, is in “no rush” to raise primary capital
and WhatsApp, Deepika Ramani, a partner at executive search and talent advisory firm ABC Consultants, said social media firms with a certain scale can effectively expand their user base and offerings through acquisitions.
“If you look at any organization of this nature, they are looking to increase revenue-generating opportunities, and subscriber base. For instance, the Magzter acquisition in many ways is going to do them a lot of good as the company has an extremely extensive catalogue. With this acquisition, VerSe could see their
THE Dailyhunt parent will finance the acquisitions using its existing cash reserves
VERSE has been in advanced talks to acquire Koo, according to news reports
valuation increase multifold,” she added.
Over the last five years, VerSe has acquired social media app GolBol, photo-video sharing community app Vebbler, artificial intelligence (AI) solutions provider Cognirel and online news platform Local Play, according to data sourced from Tracxn. It has spent less than $100 million on each of its previous acquisitions.
VerSe has been in advanced discussions to acquire social networking startup Koo, according to news reports.
Experts anticipate a surge in consolidation in the social media space, with companies struggling to generate revenues and sustain growth amid uncertain macroeconomic conditions, and declining advertising budgets.
The funding winter coupled with regulatory changes, such as a 28% goods and services taxes on online gaming, along with bans on betting and gambling, have added to the woes of the advertising industry.
Even major players, such as Google and Meta, have seen stagnant or slower revenue growth, reflecting the broader industry trend.
However, according to Bedi, VerSe managed to buck the trend, and is witnessing steady revenue growth from online advertising and subscription services across its applications, influencer marketing and other online platforms. In FY23, its operating revenue grew 51% to ₹1,456 crore, the company’s latest filings sourced from Tofler showed.
Innovation has been key to sustain growth. It launched Xpresso, an AI-driven newsfeed in local languages, tailored for young audiences, and signed licensing agreements with over 100,000 partners, including influencers and news portals, for aggregating content. It also employs AI algorithms to analyse content, leveraging browsing behaviour of users to provide personalized experiences.
Thyrocare founder Dr. Arokiaswamy Velumani has joined forces with Young Entrepreneurs Association (YEA) and Magnifiq Capital Trust to invest up to ₹50 crore in Indian startups.
As part of this initiative, Velumani will not only provide financial backing, but mentor promising startups, according to a statement issued by YEA on Sunday.
With his wealth of experience and expertise, Velumani plans to handpick seed-stage companies with considerable growth potential, and target entities with at least ₹5 crore in turnover, he said in an interview with Mint.
However, Velumani is not looking to increase the size of his investments in view of the lack of viable opportunities, considering that 90% of startups are yet to achieve desired scale, he added.
Velumani shot to fame following Thyrocare’s public listing in 2016. Nearly 26 years after its launch, PharmEasy’s parent company API Holding Ltd had acquired 66% stake in Thyrocare for approximately ₹4,546 crore in 2021.
When asked about the current synergies between the two firms, Velumani refrained from commenting.
Thyrocare’s shares rose by 46% over the past year to ₹651 apiece. For the past two years, Velumani has been mentoring small business owners.