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Lokal, a platform for hyperlocal content, said that it has secured Rs 120 crore ($14.7 million) in a Series B round from Sony Innovation Fund and Global Brain Corporation.
The round also included current investors and the venture capital company India Quotient, according to a statement from Lokal. The Y Combinator-backed business stated that it plans to utilise the additional funding to expand in current markets, introduce new product categories and capabilities, and enhance its product and technical teams.
With this most recent round, Lokal has now raised more than Rs 225 crore in total capital. The demand for alternative social platforms like Lokal will arise as the non-English speaking population’s use of internet-based services increases, according to CEO and CIO of Sony Ventures Corporation, Gen Tsuchikawa.
Pasha and Vipul Chaudhary established Lokal in 2018. It secured $3 million from investors including India Quotient and VC company 3one4 Capital in the latter part of 2019. In late 2021, it received $12mn in a Series A financing, according to sources at the time.
The firm from Bengaluru claims that over 180 districts in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Kerala, and Gujarat have downloaded their software more than 40 million times.
The app, which is available in six languages, provides information to users, primarily in smaller towns and cities that would otherwise be dispersed throughout local newspapers in vernacular languages, such as local jobs, commodity prices, real estate, local business advertorials, matrimonial, and classifieds.