Naukri parent Info Edge backs realty-tech startup ZippServ

Info Edge (India) Ltd, which runs jobs site Naukri.com, has invested Rs 3 crore (around $440,000) in ZippServ, an online platform that provides risk-assessment services for real estate investments.

Mumbai-listed Info Edge said in a stock-exchange filing that it will hold a 45% stake in ZippServ—operated by Bengaluru-based startup Ideaclicks Infolabs Pvt. Ltd—after the investment.

The company had previously invested Rs 2.4 crore in ZippServ for a 28% stake, its 2016-17 annual report shows.

In May last year, VCCircle had reported that ZippServ had raised Rs 2.5 crore. The startup hadn’t revealed the investors’ identity then.

ZippServ offers technology-enabled services to ascertain encroachments on properties. It also uses map-based data to offer transparent pricing, property verification, registration, valuation and inspection services. It also provides advisory services related to legal, technical and civil engineering due diligence. ZippServ’s clients include home and plot buyers, non-resident Indian investors, commercial enterprises and asset management firms.

ZippServ was founded in December 2015 by Sudeep Anandapuram and Debashish Hota. Anandapuram previously held senior engineering positions at Tellabs, Cisco Systems and Tejas Networks. Hota has worked in networking, telecommunications and defence companies. He had a 10-year stint with Tejas Networks.

Info Edge’s investments

Apart from Naukri.com, the company also operates a bunch of other portals including property listing website 99acres.com and matrimonial site Jeevansathi.com. It is also an active investor in tech startups.

On Thursday, Info Edge said the company and Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings have co-invested $27.7 million in online insurance selling platform PolicyBazaar.

The investment is likely part of a $200 million round led by SoftBank Vision Fund that catapulting PolicyBazaar to the status of a unicorn—an industry term for a startup valued at $1 billion or more.

In April, Info Edge invested Rs 3 crore ($460,000) in business-to-business footwear marketplace ShoeKonnect for a 20% stake.

In December 2017, Info Edge invested in Hyderabad-based International Educational Gateway Pvt. Ltd, an education services startup that operates under the Univariety brand. The previous month, Info Edge increased its stake in Delhi-based lifestyle products company Happily Unmarried Marketing to 47.2%. In September, it increased its stake in Bengaluru-based online photography startup Canvera Digital Technologies by investing Rs 8.6 crore.