In Brief: Lightspeed to raise new India fund; Gaja Capital, L Catterton may buy stakes in Zivame

Menlo Park, California-based venture capital firm Lightspeed is planning to raise its third India-focused fund, The Economic Times reported. The company is looking to secure up to $300 million for the new fund by the next quarter. The third fund is being created after the company earned about $900 million in cash returns from exits from unicorns like hospitality chain OYO and ed-tech startup Byju’s, the report said. 

Read: Rheo raises $2 mn seed funding from Lightspeed, Sequoia and others

Gaja Capital and L Catterton may acquire 40% stake in Zivame

India focussed private equity firm Gaja Capital and global fund L Catterton may acquire around 40% stake in Bengaluru-based online innerwear brand Zivame in a secondary deal, The Economic Times reported. Both the companies are in separate discussions for acquiring a stake in Zivame, the report said. The transaction will see its existing investors Ronnie Screwvala-promoted Unilazer Ventures and Malaysian sovereign fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd selling their shares at a valuation of $100 million. Last year in September, Zivame bagged $2.7 million from existing investors Zodius Capital and Avendus Capital.

Read: Zivame narrows FY19 losses and targets more than 100 offline stores over two years

Hotstar rolls out 360-degree marketing campaign

Disney-owned video streaming platform Hotstar has rolled out a 360-degree marketing campaign. Under the latest drive, Hotstar has added free content to its platform to expand its user base in tier II and tier III cities. “We see a huge opportunity in building awareness and encouraging trial across Tier II and Tier III cities around our vast and high quality library of free entertainment, and thereby, enabling a behavior shift towards online video consumption,” Sidharth Shakdher, EVP and business head, Hotstar, said.

Read: Hotstar revenue rises two fold to Rs 1,112 cr in FY19; losses widen

Ess Kay Fincorp raises Rs 86 crore in debt funding

Jaipur-based Ess Kay Fincorp has raised Rs 86 crore in debt funding from funds managed by  Swiss asset manager responsAbility AG. The transaction was done on Vivriti Capital’s online enterprise debt platform, CredAvenue. The funds were raised in the form of NCD’s (non-convertible debentures) via VRR (voluntary retention route). Ess Kay operates across a network of 313 branches in six states. It claims to have over 2.25 lakh customers.