e-commerce
LimeRoad raises $45 million in less than a year
MUMBAI: LimeRoad, a social-shopping platform for women, has raised a series C financing following rapid growth in community engagement, scrapbook creation and revenue growth.
This two-year old company has raised total funds to the tune of $45 million in the past year and this round comes within ten months of its Series B financing. Tiger Global Management, an existing investor, leads the new round with participation from existing investors Lightspeed Venture Partners and Matrix Partners India.
Over the last year, LimeRoad has been steadily nurturing a unique hyperactive community that takes products from thousands of sellers from across the country and shows users how to transform even the most basic white t-shirt into a style statement.
The community posted more than 1.5 million style statements as “scrapbooks” last month alone, with per day postings reaching 100,000+, achieving 100x growth in less than a year.
“It’s transformational,” said a graphic design student in Delhi Komal, who has made 800 scrapbooks. She added, “Scrapbooking on LimeRoad makes me feel ultra stylish. It’s a daily routine that is a release after a hard day.”
A homemaker in Jharkhand, Jhanvi, who has created 2000+scrapbooks, stated, “I feel like I am getting out of my town. It has helped me personally develop, changed my sense of style. I purchase my looks for myself and love it. Now I try so many new things.”
LimeRoad’s machine algorithms rank order and display the highest quality scrapbooks for millions of users to find the trendiest products and styles.
LimeRoad was founded by Suchi Mukherjee, Prashant Malik and Ankush Mehra, who collectively have previously held leadership roles at eBay, Skype, Facebook, Samsung and Reliance Hypermarkets.
LimeRoad founder and CEO Suchi Mukherjee said, “We are revolutionizing the way lifestyle products are discovered and ultimately bought in India, and in doing so, we are changing social order. Smaller unique sellers from across the country are getting discovered, women from across the country are using scrapbooks as a medium of style expression, and millions of users are getting access to highly affordable and unique style.”
“We grew GMV 600 per cent in the last 12 months, thanks to our passionate users who visited our app on average more than 38 times in the last six months. That’s a delightful 76 times a year! As a result 80-85 per cent of our orders come from organic traffic.”
Tiger Global partner Lee Fixel said, “The uniqueness of LimeRoad lies in the passionate user base and the mission of providing an engaging platform for smaller brands to thrive. We love this approach and are investing behind it and behind the team executing the strategy.”
Lightspeed Advisory Services India managing director Bejul Somaia added, “We continue to be highly supportive of LimeRoad. This is a truly exceptional team that has already disproved many accepted notions in Indian online commerce as a result of which they are showing extraordinary organic traction.”
Matrix India managing director Avnish Bajaj said, “The LimeRoad team is a unique combination of a crystal clear vision combined with sheer execution prowess. We continue to be amazed by their sheer passion, sharp thinking and their core engagement metrics.”
e-commerce
American Express to acquire AI startup Hyper to boost automation
Deal targets expense management as AI reshapes corporate spending tools.
MUMBAI: From receipts to robots, the expense sheet is getting a brain upgrade as American Express moves to bring artificial intelligence into the heart of corporate spending. The company has announced plans to acquire Hyper, a relatively young but fast-rising startup founded in 2022 that builds AI-powered agents capable of organising expenses, generating reports, verifying compliance with budgets and policies, and nudging users with timely reminders. The deal, expected to close in the second quarter of 2026, underscores a growing shift among financial institutions to automate traditionally manual, time-heavy workflows.
Hyper counts Sam Altman among its backers, adding a layer of Silicon Valley credibility to the acquisition. While financial details remain undisclosed, the strategic intent is clear: deepen automation capabilities and sharpen American Express’s position in the competitive corporate spending ecosystem.
The two companies are not strangers. They previously collaborated in 2024 on a co-branded credit card product, suggesting that the acquisition is less a cold buy and more an extension of an existing relationship. With this move, American Express is effectively bringing that capability in-house, aiming to embed AI directly into its commercial services stack.
Chief executive Stephen Squeri had already signalled the direction of travel in a recent shareholder letter, describing AI as a “structural shift” in how businesses operate. The Hyper acquisition appears to be a direct response to that shift, particularly in expense management, where processes such as approvals, compliance checks and reporting remain ripe for automation.
Alongside the acquisition, the company is also expanding its product suite. A recently launched business credit card offers cashback and benefits at an annual fee of $295, with another card expected later this year moves that complement its broader push into commercial services.
Taken together, the strategy points to a future where managing expenses may require fewer spreadsheets and more algorithms. For American Express, the bet is simple, if businesses are rethinking how work gets done, the tools that power that work need to evolve just as quickly.
