Tencent : Indian e-commerce startup Udaan raises $280 million from Tencent, others

BENGALURU (Reuters) - Indian business-to-business e-commerce startup Udaan has raised $280 million, it said Wednesday, as it seeks to serve more mom-and-pop businesses that are buying products online in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Udaan said existing investors including Chinese tech giant Tencent, Lightspeed Venture Partners, DST Global, GGV Capital and Altimeter Capital participated in the fundraising, along with new investors - Octahedron Capital and Moonstone Capital.

The Bengaluru-based firm, founded in 2016, is now valued at more than $3 billion, a person familiar with the matter said.

A representative for Udaan declined to comment on its valuation.

"COVID-19 has accelerated the already fast digital-led evolution of highly fragmented and unorganized Indian trade/ retail industry," Udaan co-founder Amod Malviya said.

Udaan, which offers everything from consumer goods to fruits and vegetables, has now raised $1.15 billion to date, the company said.

(Reporting by Sachin Ravikumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)