Gurugram-based 1mg Technologies Pvt. Ltd, which operates an eponymous online pharmacy, has raised $70 million (Rs 483 crore) in its Series D round of funding led by Switzerland-based family office Corisol Holdings.
International Finance Corp (IFC) and a consortium of venture capital funds from South Korea led by Redwood Global—Korea Omega Healthcare fund also contributed to the funding round, 1mg said in a statement.
The statement comes a few months after IFC said in a disclosure that it had proposed to invest in the online pharmacy company.
TechCircle had previously reported that Corisol, which is a shareholder in European e-pharmacy chain Zur Rose/Doc Morris, is leading this funding round.
Existing investors Sequoia Capital, Maverick Ventures, HBM Healthcare investments, Omidyar Network and Kae Capital also participated in this funding round, it added.
The company will use the fresh funds to boost growth, invest in supply chain and to improve Artificial Intelligence (AI) capabilities. It also aims to launch innovative care delivery models, both online and offline, by personalising its care management programmes and expanding partnerships with hospitals, insurance, pharmaceuticals companies and government.
“1mg’s commitment to integrated services, backed by their technology and strong unit economics has helped them achieve remarkable growth,” said Vanessa Frey, CEO at Corisol Holding.
Ruchira Shukla, South Asia regional lead of venture Capital at IFC, said that 1mg’s platform will drive affordability of quality healthcare, particularly in tier-2 and tier-3 cities.
DCS Advisory & Link Legal advised 1mg on the transaction.
1mg, which was previously known as Healthkart Plus, was founded in 2011 by Prashant Tandon, Vikas Chauhan and Gaurav Agarwal. It allows customers to order medicines, consult doctors and also purchase health products on its website and via its app. Users can also book diagnostic services and lab tests.
Tandon co-founded online health product platform Healthkart, from which 1mg was hived off as a separate entity in 2015.
For the financial year 2017-18, the company’s operating revenue surged eight-fold while losses widened three-fold. At the same time, the firm’s losses also rose by more than three times for the financial year ended 31 March 2018.
1mg’s peers
Besides 1mg, the online pharmacy sector has well-funded players PharmEasy and Netmeds.
PharmEasy had raised a Series C round of funding in March last year led by existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners and Orios Venture Partners.
NetMeds raised $35 million in September last year in a Series C funding round from Southeast Asian business conglomerate Daun Penh Cambodia Group based in Singapore. NetMeds acquired health-tech startup KiViHealth earlier in March.
Medlife acquired e-pharmacy Myra to expand delivery services earlier in May.
