Uable raises pre-Series A funding, Next Orbit buys 19% of Alan Scott Industries

By Narinder Kapur

  • 31 Mar 2021
Credit: 123RF.com

Uable, a platform focused on career discovery and skilling for people between the ages of 13 and 18, has raised $3.5 million (around Rs 25.6 crore) in a pre-Series A fundraising round. 

The round in Bengaluru- and Singapore-based Uable has been led by JAFCO Asia and Chiratae Ventures, with participation from existing investor 3one4 Capital. 

Last year, Uable raised an undisclosed amount in seed funding. The round was led by 3one4 Capital, with participants including Global Founders Capital, Inflection Point Ventures, AngelList, and angel investors including Amrish Rau and Jitendra Gupta. 

Uable, operated by Uable Pte Ltd, was set up by Saurabh Saxena, who also co-founded tutoring platform Vedantu and Lakshya. The company says its platform focuses on addressing current gaps in the education system through real-world learning with a focus on skills needed for contemporary careers. 

Uable will use the capital it has raised to build out its team, scale its product, and add more categories for students to explore. 

Next Orbit Ventures, the multi-asset fund manager led by Ajay Jalan, has picked up nearly 19% in socks manufacturer-turned-media production house Alan Scott Industries Ltd. 

In a stock-exchange filing, the growth-stage investor said it has picked up 2.25 lakh equity shares of the company with a face value of Rs 10 at a premium of Rs 15 each. The deal took place via preferential allotment. 

Shares of Alan Scott Industries ended trading on Wednesday 1.14% up at Rs 22.25 apiece. The company reported net sales and losses of Rs 4.6 lakh and Rs 6.8 lakh, respectively, for the 2019-20 financial year. 

According to its website, Next Orbit was set up in 2012 by Ajay Jalan, who has held positions at companies and entities including IFCI, Tata, i2 Technologies, and NITCO. 

The firm says it partners with management teams to help improve operations and scale businesses. It makes investments across classes, including venture capital, private equity, public equity and debt investments.