Instamojo acquihires entertainment platform Showman

Small and medium enterprises-focused payments services company Instamojo on Thursday announced it has acquihired Bengaluru-based virtual theatre platform Showman. 

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. 

Acqui-hire refers to the buyout of a company primarily for the skills and expertise of its staff, rather than for its products or services. 

As part of the deal, Showman’s co-founders Kshitij Bhatawdekar and Rutveez Roopam Rout will join Instamojo as product manager and user research manager respectively, according to a statement. 

“This acquihire will help Instamojo strengthen its product and tech prowess as we continue to innovate across multiple categories and achieve our vision of being the most trusted platform for MSMEs to start their business online,” Akash Gehani, co-founder and COO, Instamojo, said. 

Founded in 2019, Showman operates a virtual theatre that enables users to buy movie tickets online and watch it from their homes. The company claims it has clocked a compound monthly growth rate of 73.2% and negotiated $30 million worth of movie contracts across Indian film industries. 

“As an entertainment-focused platform, we have deep insights into the users of India. When we spoke to Instamojo, we realized our insights can drive real impact for the MSME space of India,” Bhatawdekar said. 

Launched in 2012 by Sampad Swain, Akash Gehani and Aditya Sengupta, Instamojo focusses on helping businesses with services including payment collections, creating online stores, shipping products, and securing small loans. 

In February last year, the company acquired GetMeAShop, a digital commerce enabler for MSMEs (medium and small enterprises).  

In its last known fundraising, the Bengaluru-based company secured an undisclosed sum from investors including Gunosy Capital, the investment arm of Japanese news curation app Gunosy. 

Instamojo had raised a $7 million Series B round in January 2019. Investors in the round included Tokyo-based payments firm AnyPay and Gunosy, among others.