VigyanLabs, a firm that received initial funding from the Government’s Department of Science and Technology (DST), is in talks with two private equity (PE) firms to raise about $10 million (Rs 62 crore). The clean-technology IT company will raise the funding in two tranches and use the proceeds for development and expansion plans.
“We are in advanced stages of negotiations with two PE funds to raise about $3-4 million (Rs 19 crore to Rs 25 crore) and expect to close it by mid-December or early January. This would be our first round of institutional funding (Series A),” VigyanLabs Vice President (Business Development & Strategy) Madhusudhan R told Business Line.
However, Madhusudhan declined to name the PE firms, citing non-disclosure agreements.
The Mysore-based company will use the funding to develop variants of its software Intelligent Power Management Plus (IPM+), buying testing equipment and expanding presence in Japan and the US. It will be also used to increase its technology team in India to 100 from the present 38.
VigyanLabs will raise a similar or much higher amount in the second tranche.
“The Series B funding will be raised 12-18 months after the first tranche. The exact amount is yet to be finalised, but in all we might raise about $10 million,” Madhusudhan said, adding, the second round would be used for large expansion plans.
The clean-technology IT company, founded by IIT-ians Srinivas Vardarajan and Srivatsa Krishnaswamy in 2008 -- is also in advanced stages of discussions with Indian Android handset makers to supply its power saving suite IPM+.
“We expect to win one or two deals in the next couple of months,” he said, without divulging the details.
The company was set up in 2008, with a seed funding of Rs 25 lakh raised from family and friends, and later in 2010-11, VigyanLabs got an investment from DST.
VigyanLabs, which has software that enables to save power across digital and analogue products, claims to have saved 2.8 giga watt hours (equal to lighting up 48 million homes) of energy across all its clients.
“We are targeting to light up 1 billion homes by March 31, 2016,” he added.