Simple Energy raises $180 million in largest funding round, eyes top-five EV two-wheeler spot

Bengaluru-based electric two-wheeler maker Simple Energy has raised Rs 1,750 crore ($180 million) in its largest funding round till date. It plans to use the capital to increase production capacity and expand its retail footprint, targeting a spot among the country’s top five electric two-wheeler makers.

The all-equity round was led by the family office of Dr Arokiaswamy Velumani, founder of the diagnostics firm Thyrocare Technologies, with participation from Simple Energy founder and CEO Suhas Rajkumar, cofounder and CFO Ankit Gupta, Bengaluru-based HNI Amit Mishra, and the Haran Family Office.

The company had raised Rs 250 crore in June to scale manufacturing and expand its retail network. The latest round is significantly larger as Simple looks to build a new manufacturing facility and double its monthly capacity.


“This fundraise gives us the room to scale aggressively. We are looking at taking our capacity from 10,000 scooters a month today to around 25,000 a month in the next one year, while expanding our retail network across the country. We see ourselves among the top five electric two-wheeler players in India,” Rajkumar told ET on Wednesday.

He added that Simple Energy has been able to cater to only about 50% of the demand, which has spiked three to four times following the launch of its family scooter, the Simple Wave.

Wave has helped the company expand beyond performance-oriented electric scooters and tap the family scooter segment, which Rajkumar said has a significantly larger customer base.

Simple Wave was launched in September and competes with the likes of Ather Rizta, TVS iQube, and Bajaj Chetak.

Simple Energy sold 8,908 electric two-wheelers in FY26, an increase from 1,959 units in FY25, per Vahan data.

The startup’s revenues rose fourfold from Rs 40 crore in FY25 to Rs 170 crore in FY26, according to the company. So far it has raised about Rs 2,530 crore from family offices, HNIs, and other investors.

Simple Energy was founded in 2019 by Rajkumar and Shreshth Mishra. Ankit Gupta later joined as a co-founder.

Retail expansion

Rajkumar said the capital will also be used to expand its distribution and service network, hire more employees, and invest in its next product cycle.

The startup currently has more than 80 outlets across 60-plus cities. Rajkumar said Simple Energy plans to have about 150 outlets by March 2027, but the latest fundraise will allow it to go significantly beyond that.

“Our goal is to establish a presence across every possible district and city in India over the next 12 months,” he said.

The new manufacturing facility will come up next to the company’s existing plant and will be significantly larger. Rajkumar said the current facility has reached its limit, making a new one necessary to reach the company’s targeted capacity of 25,000 units a month.

“We have a great product strategy, and I think it's time we start looking at retail and capacity as our biggest growth drivers, rather than the product,” Rajkumar said.

He added that the company's aim is to scale quickly and capture the demand it has so far been unable to serve.

“Simple owns the end-to-end technology for chassis, battery, motor, and software. That is very rare in the Indian EV vertical. The next phase will focus on scaling manufacturing, marketing, and retail networks. With tailwinds from global challenges in fossil energy, Simple is well positioned to be among the top three players of the EV2W vertical in India in three years,” Dr Velumani said.