Info Edge India Ltd., which owns and operates multiple online businesses in India and abroad, has invested $7 million in Geniemode, a b-to-b electronic retailing site, in a Series A funding round.
According to a news release, the investment was made via the publicly traded company’s investment arm, Info Edge Ventures. The fresh funding comes just four months after Info Edge invested $2.25 million in Geniemode as part of a seed round. The proceeds will go towards enhancing the site, on-boarding buyers and vendors and expansion, Geniemode has announced.
“We are very excited to have Info Edge Ventures double down on their conviction in us in quick succession. We’ll utilize the fresh capital to bolster tech and product development, accelerate expansion in existing markets, and enter new markets,” said CEO and co-founder Amit Sharma.
Info Edge has been on an investment spree, having recently deployed $50 million into its portfolio of businesses, including its real estate and recruitment sites. The beneficiaries included Zwayam (acquired in June), DoSelect (acquired in July), Allcheckdeals India Pvt. Ltd., Redstart Labs, Startup Internet Services and Startup Investments Ltd. These investments were preceded by other strategic acquisitions like 4B Networks.
All in all, investments into and acquisitions of recruitment- and real estate-related businesses are part of Info Edge’s strategy to consolidate its interests under its subsidiaries, Naukri.com and 99Acres. Recruitment portal Naukri.com’s growth and real estate marketplace 99Acres’ continued recovery contributed to Info Edge’s profitable Q2, FY21-22.
Info Edge’s net profits increased exponentially in the said quarter, from $44.1 million in Q2 FY20-21 to a whopping $990.5 million year-over-year after it cashed in on the Zomato IPO. It clocked a return of 1,050 times on initial investment into Zomato—which could be an incentive behind its decision to invest in a promising business like Geniemode.
Info Edge owns and operates several digital businesses in India and abroad. The publicly traded company has over 4,500 employees working out of 66 offices in 45 cities across India and the Middle East. Shares of Info Edge were trading at INR 5,604 ($75.36 U.S.) apiece on NSE at the time of reporting.