Drone maker Garuda Aerospace raises Rs 25 crore in fresh bridge round

Drone manufacturer Garuda Aerospace has received Rs 25 crore funding from a fresh bridge round led by integrated incubator Venture Catalysts, WeFounderCircle to meet its working capital requirements, the company said on Wednesday.

The fresh round of capital raising also witnessed commitments from other investors, including Hems Angels, San Angels, Peaceful progress funds and several angel investors.

“This fresh capital infusion will play a crucial role in accelerating our growth and enhancing our capabilities to meet the escalating market demand,” said Garuda Aerospace Founder-CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash.

“With the continued backing of esteemed investors and the endorsement of (cricket legend) MS Dhoni, we are confident in our mission to revolutionise the drone technology sector in India,” he said in a statement.

The funds secured through this bridge round would be primarily utilised to address the demand for drones.

The company would allocate the funds towards working capital requirements, execution of the IFFCO (Indian Farmers Fertilisers Cooperative Ltd) drone order and fulfilling the pre-booked orders.

“We are excited to lead this Series A extension for Garuda Aerospace. Garuda's strong commitment to delivering cutting-edge drone solutions, combined with their impressive market share in the precision agri-drone industry, demonstrates their potential for significant growth,” said Venture Catalysts founder and managing director Apoorva Ranjan Sharma.

WeFounderCircle Co-founder and CEO Neeraj Tyagi said, “Garuda is disrupting the drone ecosystem by introducing the micro-entrepreneur business model for rural India, after successfully establishing itself as a leader in corporate and industrial segment. We believe in their vision to use drone for Bharat, and feel that they will unlock a very big value for agriculture use of drone.” Garuda Aerospace has received orders for 400 units from IFFCO and also a pre-booking of a total 10,000 drones from 700 dealers across the country, the statement added.