CHENNAI, 22 March 2022: Aquaconnect, a Chennai-based network for aqua farmers, has raised USD 8 million in a venture debt funding round led by Trifecta Capital.
Startup plans to use funds to expand its presence in India by developing franchise stores where fish and shrimp farmers have access to quality input products. In addition, it will invest in enhancing its post-harvest market linkage and upscale operations.
Rajamanohar Somasundaram, founder and CEO of Aquaconnect, said “At Aquaconnect, our aim is to make the aquaculture value chain more efficient and transparent while increasing value realization through tech intervention. The fresh round of capital will help us achieve this goal by paving the way for expansion of our aqua partners network in India and help the aquaculture farmers reach more buyers by strengthening our post-harvest market linkage solutions.”
Aquaconnect's platform, founded by Somasundaram in 2017, helps aquaculture farmers increase earnings by connecting them with smart farm management tools, financial services and customers. The company works with fish and shrimp farmers to boost farming productivity, market access, and financial access through innovative technology solutions. Additionally, it claims to work with more than 60,000 farmers in states across the country.
At the start of July 2021, Aquaconnect raised USD 4m in a Pre-Series A capital raise led by Rebright Partners and Flourish Ventures. Participating investors included AgFunder, 6G Capital, and existing investors Omnivore, and HATCH.
Then, the startup deployed funds to scale its farm advisory, financial services and marketplace for seafood exports.
Omnivore and existing investor HATCH contributed USD 1.1m to Acquaconnect's seed funding round in September 2019, and Omnivore's partner Reihem Roy joined Acquaconnect's board to help drive the business.
A rival of Aquaconnect; Captain Fresh, the tech-enabled, B2B animal protein marketplace, raised USD 50m in a Series C funding round led by existing investors Prosus Ventures and Tiger Global, along with Accel India, Matrix Partners India, Ankur Capital, and Incubate Fund.
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