Equanimity Ventures has led a ₹13.8 crore ($2 million) round in Fresh VnF, a fresh fruits and vegetables technology platform optimising the supply chain for hotels, restaurants, cafes and retail customers, with participation from GVFL and Manish Choksi, non-Executive Vice-Chairman and part of the promoter group of Asian Paints through his family office. Fresh VnF will use the money to grow its farm network, build the technology platform for seamless supply chain operations at scale and help reach fresh farm produce to end customers within 16 hours of harvesting. It will also use the funds to increase its retail footprint.

mCaffeine raises ₹13.8 crore

mCaffeine, a caffeine infused skin and hair care brand, has raised about ₹13.8 crore ($2 million) as part of a Series A round led by RP-SG Ventures. Other investors include Apurva Salarpuria, LV Angel Fund, KRS Jamwal and Telama Investments. The company had raised $500,000 in an earlier round including from angel investors Harminder Sahni and Kaushal Aggarwal, who have also participated in the latest funding round. Founded by Vikas Lachhwani and Tarun Sharma in October 2016, mCaffeine has products in three major categories – face care, hair care and body care – with 10 products in its portfolio. The company will use the money to enter more markets and grow the business.

Avail Finance gets ₹62-cr funding

Matrix Partners India has led a ₹62 crore ($9 million) Series A round in fintech platform Avail Finance. The company will use the money to expand its product suite to offer micro-savings and micro-insurance products tailored for blue-collar workers. Founded in 2017 by Ankush Aggarwal and Tushar Mehndiratta, Avail Finance is building a neo-bank for blue-collar workers and it has built and tested a micro-lending platform. Matrix India had led a seed round in Avail in March 2018, which also saw investments from entrepreneurs such as Binny Bansal, Kunal Shah, Bhavish Aggarwal, Ankit Bhati and Manish Patel.

CDPQ invests in M&M Benefit

Canadian institutional investor Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec (CDPQ) has invested ₹1,244 crore for buying 1.92 crore shares in Mahindra & Mahindra Benefit Trust. CDPQ manages nearly C$ 310 billion on behalf of public and para-public organisations, mainly pension and insurance plans in 60 countries.

Mitsubishi hikes stake in TVS Auto

Mitsubishi Corporaiton of Japan has increased its stake in TVS Automobile Solutions Pvt Ltd, a leading player in the automotive aftermarket business, from 3 per cent to 25 per cent, through a combination of primary investment and secondary purchase. Mitsubishi’s total investment in TVS Automobile Solutions will be over ₹250 crore. Our Bureau

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