Info Edge puts in $2.2M more in online photography startup Canvera, ups stake to 32%

Info Edge (India), which runs a slew of consumer Internet portals, including Naukri.com, has invested Rs 13.5 crore ($2.21 million) more in online photography startup Canvera Digital Technologies Pvt Ltd. The investment was done through optionally convertible cumulative redeemable preference shares.

In total, Canvera has raised Rs 15 crore in funding, of which the remaining Rs 1.5 crore was invested by a few unnamed investors.

With the fresh investment, Info Edge's total exposure to Canvera has risen to Rs 57 crore and it holds around 32 per cent per cent stake in Canvera (on a fully diluted and converted basis), up from around 27 per cent as of February 2014 this year.

Last month, Info Edge had bought Rs 1.5 crore ($239,385) worth of shares of Canvera from a few unnamed angel investors, providing them with an exit.

Prior to that, the firm had infused Rs 4.5 crore in Canvera. That investment was done through optionally convertible cumulative redeemable preference shares. Originally, Info Edge had picked 23 per cent effective stake for Rs 35.4 crore, which would have valued Canvera at around Rs 150 crore on. Early last year, it hiked its stake to 25 per cent and its total exposure rose to Rs 37.5 crore.

Canvera has raised a total of approximately Rs 88 crore to date. The company had earlier raised$6.5 million in a Series B round of funding from Info Edge in August 2012. Before that, it had raised funding from Footprint Ventures, DFJ and Mumbai Angels.

Founded by Dhiraj Kacker and Peeyush Rai in 2008 as a web-enabled photobook company, Canvera forayed into associated e-commerce in March 2011. The company is providing solutions to professional photographers via its website Canvera.com. It prints photo books, provides design services and also offers hosted software solutions for photographers (through a SaaS model).

Headquartered in Bangalore, the company has regional offices in seven cities—Chandigarh, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Mumbai.

(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)