Daily Brief Private Markets: Tata-owned BigBasket adds $200m funding to cart and more

In today’s briefing:

Tata-owned BigBasket adds $200m funding to cart

BigBasket, an India-based online grocery player owned by conglomerate Tata Sons, has raised US$200 million at a US$3.2 billion valuation, the platform’s co-founder and CEO Hari Menon told Tech in Asia.
Founded from a small office in Bengaluru in 2011 by Menon and four other partners, V S Sudhakar, Vipul Parek, Abhinay Choudhari, and V S Ramesh, BigBasket was acquired by Tata Sons through its subsidiary Tata Digital in 2021.
Largely focusing on online grocery, BigBasket has also expanded to quick commerce via BB Now and subscription-based service via BB Daily.

Freetech Intelligent Systems, a China-based autonomous driving firm, has raised nearly US$100 million in its series B round, Nikkei Asia reported.
Chaos Investment led the round, with TCL Industries Holdings, BAIC Capital, and Hengxu Capital participating, among other investors.
Founded in 2016, Freetech creates a full-stack solution for autonomous vehicles, creating both software and hardware components to power cars.

Indonesia-based banking and digital finance platform Akulaku has secured a US$200 million investment from Japanese megabank Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG).
The investment will support its expansion of banking services across Southeast Asia, including underserved customers and markets.
The company’s future growth plans align with MUFG’s, and their joint expansion into new territories, markets, and products will accelerate heading into 2023.

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