New Delhi, June 26 -- Private equity (PE) and venture capital (VC) transactions exceeded $1 billion for a second straight week, driven by a few headline grabbing deals, but overall activity continued to decline, data collected by VCCircle showed.

At least 20 companies raised as much as $1.2 billion (around Rs 11,331 crore) in PE-VC deals during the five-day period ending June 26, compared to 23 firms raising around roughly the same amount, data compiled by VCCircle showed.

Technology-driven platforms in personal finance and real estate were among the top segments gaining significant investor interest this week.

Meta Platforms' $900 million investment in fintech unicorn Cred was the biggest transaction this week; the tech giant acquired a 20% stake at a post-money valuation of $4.5 billion.

Real estate marketplace SquareYards bagging $95 million in a fresh funding round led by EAAA Alternatives, comprising a mix of equity and debt, was also among the top three deals this week.

Technology and artificial intelligence categories also saw significant investments below $35 million. These include enterprise AI startup Hang Ten Systems, home improvement platform AllHome, waste management platform Recykal, and AI marketing platform JustAI.

Investors such as Mayfield, Bessemer Venture Partners, 360 One Asset Management Ltd, Trinity Combine, Strat Venture LLC, the family office of Ajay Parekh, and Base10 backed these respective startups.

Other notable deals included Yash Highvoltage, Mitigata, Bodycraft and SuperLiving raising money from investors Anantroop Financial Advisory, WhiteOak Capital, Motilal Oswal, Bessemer Venture Partners, Singularity AMC and Lightspeed.

Meanwhile, the number of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the week jumped to 12 from eight last week, signalling a strengthening deal activity.

Nasdaq-listed EXL's acquisition of AI data solutions company iMerit for $310 million was the largest deal reported this week. The takeover allowed iMerit's early investors including Omidyar Networks and Khosla Ventures to script a multibagger exit.

Technology distributor Rashi Peripherals' acquisition of VDA Infosolutions Pvt Ltd for $38.9 million and Sun Pharmaceutical's takeover of Innovcare Lifesciences for $28.6 million were also notable deals this week.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.