Startup Funding Round-up: Smartphone renewing firm ControlZ, D2C home care brand Koparo, supply chain finance startup Cashinvoice raise funds

Startup Funding Round-up: In their separate deals, ControlZ — a smartphone renewing startup — has raised $3 million in seed funding; D2C home care brand Koparo has received Rs 6 crore funding from 4P Capital Partners and Shark Tank India; while Cashinvoice has closed its $3.4 million funding round.

ControlZ raises $3 Million in seed funding

ControlZ has raised $3 million in its seed funding round co-led by 9 Unicorn and Venture Catalysts, the company announced on Wednesday, February 7, 2024. The fresh funding is a combination of debt and equity.

ControlZ said that it plans to use the funding to fortify its automation procedure while benchmarking towards advanced testing labs on par with OEMs to ensure just like new smartphones in the pre-owned category.

"ControlZ is making a massive impact on the environment by helping reduce e-waste in the $70 billion pre-owned smartphone segment. We expect ControlZ to be a market leader in the segment in the next three years with their advanced facility for premium brands thus accelerating their positioning in this fast-growing sector while making an impactful environmental difference," said Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, co-founder and MD, Venture Catalysts.

ControlZ was founded by Yug Bhatia. The firm specialises in the component-level rejuvenation of pre-owned electronics, giving customers an as good as a new experience. It focuses on rejuvenating both visually and functionally, extending its life cycle and, eventually, lowering the carbon footprint of smartphones.

D2C home care brand Koparo raises around Rs 6 crore 

Digital-first, sustainable, and plant-based home care brand Koparo has raised almost Rs 6 crore, the company said in a press note. This includes Rs 5.2 crore funding from 4P Capital Partners and Rs 70 lakh funding from Shark Tank India. 

As part of the funding round, Aman Gupta, co-founder, Boat, and Vineeta Singh, co-founder of Sugar, have joined the board of the company. Koparo plans to use the funds for brand building and distribution.

Founded by Simran Khara, Koparo offers a natural alternative to the regular cleaning products available in the market. The company claims to have shipped more than 5 lakh orders since it began operations in 2021.

Cashinvoice raises $3.4 million in Series A round 

Cashinvoice, a supply chain finance platform, has raised $3.4 million in its Series A round from institutional investors comprising Pravega Ventures, HDFC Bank, and existing investor Accion Venture Lab.

Cashinvoice will use the money to strengthen the existing business and facilitate the launch of new products across the supply chain finance (SCF) ecosystem. 

The startup had raised $1 million in pre-series A round from Accion Venture Lab in October 2021.

Since its inception in September 2019, Cashinvoice claims to have broken even by facilitating the disbursement of over 15 lakh invoices totaling more than Rs 15,000 crore through partnerships with leading Indian corporates such as Tata Motors, Bata, Bajaj Electricals, Oppo, Voltas, One Plus, Patanjali, Kalyan Jewellers, Paragon, and others. The company's platform supports over 3,000 MSMEs.