Udaan’s structured funding deal; Temasek pares Lenskart stake

Hit by debt troubles, Udaan has closed a structured financing deal. This and more in today’s ETtech Top 5.

Also in the letter:
■ Byju's jail threat remains
■ Qcomm goes gourmet
■ Gaming firms vs GST

---

Vaibhav Gupta, CEO, Udaan

Business-to-business (B2B) ecommerce platform Udaan has announced a $160 million structured financing transaction.

Deal structure:

• The transaction includes fresh equity, debt and debt-to-equity conversion.
• Existing investors Lightspeed and M&G Prudential are investing $50-60 million in fresh equity, as ET reported in May.
• BlackRock's credit platform is providing about $45 million in debt.
• The remaining amount will come from bondholders converting debt into equity.

CEO speak: Chief executive Vaibhav Gupta said, “With a stronger balance sheet and a simpler capital structure, we are well positioned to continue investing in customer value, deepening our market leadership and progressing towards our long-term public market ambitions.”

The company said the transaction, subject to regulatory approvals, will strengthen its balance sheet and simplify its capital structure.

Zoom out: The announcement comes days after banks and hedge funds started insolvency proceedings in the Singapore High Court against Udaan's parent company over an alleged default on $170 million of compulsorily convertible notes that matured on June 30.

---

Peyush Bansal, CEO, Lenskart

Singapore's sovereign wealth fund Temasek has trimmed its holding in eyewear retailer Lenskart, selling a 2% stake for around Rs 1,945 crore, exchange filings on Tuesday showed.

Sale details: Temasek sold the shares through open-market transactions on July 10, cutting its stake to 4.75% from 6.8%. Lenskart ended the day at Rs 543.65 on the National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Tell me more:

• The move follows recent exits by Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and SoftBank.
• ADIA sold shares worth Rs 1,944 crore.
• SoftBank offloaded shares worth Rs 2,873 crore through a block deal.

Lenskart listed in November 2025; its six-month initial public offering (IPO) lock-in ended on May 8.

Also Read: Startup investors cash out nearly Rs 18,000 crore after IPO lock-ins end


Ritesh Chandra, managing partner, Avendus Future Leaders Fund

Avendus Group is on track to wrap its third Future Leaders Fund (FLF III) at around Rs 1,800 crore by the end of July.

Key numbers:

• FLF III is coming in about Rs 300 crore above its original target.
• The fund plans to back more late-stage, cash-generating companies.
• It hit its first close at Rs 850 crore in January 2025.
• FLF II closed at around Rs 1,600 crore in 2022 and has returned about 20% of investors' capital.
• FLF I closed at Rs 375 crore in 2020.

The three funds together manage more than Rs 4,000 crore in assets.

---

Byju Raveendran, founder, Byju's

The High Court of Singapore has refused to stay Byju Raveendran's six-month jail sentence, leaving the eponymous Byju's founder exposed to imprisonment if he returns to the city-state.

What's happening:

• On July 9, the court rejected Raveendran's request to suspend the sentence, according to his law firm, Lazareff Le Bars.
• He was sentenced for contempt in May, with a temporary stay granted last month.
• Raveendran has appealed the ruling before Singapore's Court of Appeal.

His lawyer told Bloomberg that he is currently outside Singapore and that it is unclear if or when he will return.

Tell me more: The latest order intensifies Raveendran's legal troubles. He is facing claims from foreign investors globally, including in the US, where lenders are trying to recover losses on a $1.2 billion loan.

In Singapore, a unit of the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) has also taken legal action against him over its investment in Byju's. QIA welcomed the latest ruling and said it will continue to pursue legal remedies.

---

Quick commerce firms are racing upmarket, expanding premium grocery offerings as Zepto, Swiggy Instamart and Blinkit to court higher-spending shoppers.

Driving the news:

• Zepto is preparing to launch 'Select', a new section for imported products, premium groceries and fresh items. It has also started onboarding brands, sources told us.
• Flipkart Minutes is likely to launch its premium segment on its app in the first week of August, people aware of the development told ET.
• Meanwhile, Amazon Now has started piloting its gourmet segment in some pincodes in Bengaluru.
• Instamart is giving greater prominence to its premium fresh fruits and vegetables brand Nectr.

Premium push: Demand for higher-quality groceries is rising, creating room for players such as Peak XV-backed FirstClub, Handpickd (founded by Anant Goel), and consumer brand Puckk.

Satish Meena, founder of Datum Intelligence, said, “While the emergence of platforms like FirstClub and Handpickd is pushing traditional quick commerce to look into this segment, they also need it because there are always questions around the quality of storage and handling in dark stores.”

Also Read: ETtech Explainer: Why quick commerce business models are under scrutiny

---

Online gaming companies have approached the Supreme Court, seeking a review of its decision backing the 28% Goods and Services Tax (GST) and retrospective tax claims of over Rs 1.5 lakh crore.

What's happening?

• The review petitions contest the apex court's May 27 ruling upholding the 28% GST on online gaming and retrospective tax notices.
• The firms have asked the court to revisit the legal and constitutional issues linked to the tax regime.
• The ruling allows tax authorities the green light to pursue pending tax claims, adding financial and legal pressure on gaming companies.

The government is considering common rules for usernames across digital platforms as it evaluates submissions from WhatsApp, Telegram and Signal.

The issue: The Centre had directed Meta-owned WhatsApp to pause its username rollout in India. ET had reported that WhatsApp assured the government it would not launch the feature until consultations are complete. Telegram also submitted its reply to the IT ministry.

The three platforms – which currently use mobile numbers to identify users – submitted their replies last week after receiving formal notices.