Happy Friday! Giva is set to close a fresh funding round amid rising D2C jewellery interest. This and more in today’s ETtech Morning Dispatch.
Also in the letter:
■ Deepinder Goyal returns Esops
■ Elevation veteran steps down
■ Govt revamps chip incentives
Giva in talks to close Rs 150-200 crore funding at Rs 4,400-crore valuation
Silver jewellery brand Giva is closing a Rs 150-200 crore funding round led by Premji Invest and Creaegis, with Titan Capital and Kenro Capital joining the round.
Valuation check: The round, structured as a mix of primary and secondary capital, values Giva at around Rs 4,200-4,400 crore, marking a modest step-up from its previous raise. The secondary portion, led by Kenro Capital, pegs the company at about Rs 3,800-3,900 crore, with early backer A91 Partners partially selling its stake.
Why it matters: Giva operates at the crossroads of fashion and fine jewellery, a segment seeing rapid churn as younger consumers move away from heavy gold toward silver and demi-fine designs that are trend-led and more affordable.
Growth snapshot: The Bengaluru-based brand is expected to close FY26 with Rs 800-850 crore in revenue, translating to 50-60% year-on-year growth after nearly doubling its topline in FY25.
Big picture: Investor appetite for D2C jewellery is rising, buoyed by recent fundraises and BlueStone’s entry into the public markets.
Urban Ladder founder launches AC startup Optimist; raises $12 million from Accel, Arkam Ventures, others
Ashish Goel (left) and Pranav Chopra, founders, Optimist
Optimist, a new consumer appliances startup founded by Urban Ladder cofounder Ashish Goel, has raised $12 million in a funding round led by Accel and Arkam Ventures.
What’s happening? The company plans to deploy the capital toward product R&D, go-to-market expansion, strengthening its service and installation network, and scaling manufacturing capacity.
Details:
Founded in 2024 by Goel and Pranav Chopra, the Optimist is a Gurugram-based brand focused on air conditioners designed specifically for Indian weather conditions. The startup will sell through a direct-to-consumer (D2C) platform and exclusive brand stores. Product launches are scheduled for next month across Delhi NCR, Rajasthan, Telangana and Bengaluru, with a wider rollout to follow. Yes, and: The fundraise marks Goel’s return to building a consumer startup after Reliance acquired his furniture brand Urban Ladder in 2020 for Rs 182 crore.
IPO-bound PhonePe’s cofounders sold $430 million stake to General Atlantic in September 2025
Rahul Chari (left) and Sameer Nigam, founders, PhonePe
PhonePe cofounders Sameer Nigam and Rahul Chari sold shares worth Rs 3,937.3 crore (around $430 million) to US private equity firm General Atlantic in September 2025, according to the company’s initial public offering (IPO) filings.
What’s happening? The transaction took General Atlantic’s cumulative investment in the Walmart-owned digital payments major to around $1.15 billion across multiple rounds, raising its stake to 8.9%.
In October 2025, ET reported that PhonePe had raised $600 million in fresh capital from General Atlantic ahead of its IPO. This marked the US firm’s largest single investment in an Indian company.
IPO details: PhonePe’s public issue will be structured entirely as an offer for sale.
Walmart will pare its holding but remain the largest shareholder. Early backers Microsoft and Tiger Global will exit fully. The company had filed its draft prospectus via the confidential route in September 2025. ET had then reported that the listing could value PhonePe at around $15 billion.
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