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Seed Funding

Business Blasters’ Programme Kicks Off in Delhi Schools for 2024-25

Delhi Education Minister Atishi announced the launch of the Business Blasters programme for the 2024-25 academic session, aimed at fostering entrepreneurial skills among students of classes 11 and 12 in government schools across the capital. The initiative will see the Arvind Kejriwal-led government providing Rs 40 crore in seed money to support students’ business ideas, with 2.45 lakh students participating this year and over 40,000 business ideas already submitted. Private schools have also been invited to join the programme voluntarily, with students proposing startup ideas involving perfumes, soaps, chocolates, eco-friendly products, and tech-based innovations. Originally launched in 2021, the Business Blasters programme is a key part of the government’s ‘entrepreneurship mindset curriculum,’ which started as a pilot in 2019. It provides seed funding to the top 150 student-formed startups, encouraging students to turn their ideas into viable businesses. Minister Atishi took the opportunity to criticize the BJP-led central government for failing to address unemployment, contrasting this with the Delhi government’s efforts to turn students into job providers rather than job seekers. She highlighted successful startups from last year’s programme, including A K Logistics, a registered private limited company formed by students that now employs 50 people. Other student-led startups include ‘Dark Chocobitz,’ which makes customized chocolates and employs 40 women, and ‘Disposal Walaa,’ an eco-friendly startup employing 20 people. The minister emphasized that the programme holds the potential to generate thousands of jobs, turning students into entrepreneurs and significantly impacting Delhi’s economy. Source: Times of India

Investmint Halts Trading Operations to Focus on Merger and Acquisition Strategy

Investmint, a signal-based trading app, has ceased its trading services to concentrate on merger and acquisition (M&A) opportunities, as reported by Entrackr. The company is actively exploring acquisitions with wealth management firms after withdrawing Investmint as a product due to the inability to develop a reliable business model. A spokesperson for Investmint confirmed to Entrackr, “We’re in late-stage talks with a few big players for M&A.” Should these talks fail, the company may return the remaining capital to its investors. Despite achieving significant traction and retaining funds from its previous fundraising, Investmint struggled to convert these resources into revenue. In October 2022, Investmint secured $2 million in seed funding, led by Nexus Venture Partners. Founded in February 2022 by Aakash Goel and Mohit Chitlangia, Investmint aimed to simplify stock market operations for regular investors through data-driven and scientifically-backed trading and investment products. The decision to halt operations follows a pattern seen among start-ups unable to achieve a sustainable business model or product-market fit. For instance, fashion start-ups Fashinza and Virgio returned investor capital in March after altering their business models. Similarly, digital health start-up Nintee shut down in April, with founder Paras Chopra announcing the return of most raised funds to investors.