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Bengaluru-based fish and seafood tech startup, Captain Fresh, has raised USD 25 million as part of its extended Series C funding round from Nekkanti Seafoods Group and UK’s development finance institution British International Investment (BII) and a few family offices.
The B2B startup is aimed at fueling its distribution presence in the US and Europe, taking it closer to its goal of being the largest multi-species, multi-origin vertically integrated seafood platform.
Utham Gowda, Founder and CEO of Captain Fresh, said, “Every dollar we raise now is being deployed to forward integrate the distribution side of the value chain, particularly in the US and Europe. We expect these moves to enrich the monetization potential for seafood on our platform. Similarly, on the supply front, we are at the cusp of replicating our aggregation playbook to other parts of the Indian Ocean Region across various fish and seafood species.”
Captain Fresh has raised a total of USD 45 million across multiple tranches in its Series C extended round so far. In September 2023, It raised USD 20 million led by Strategic Business Innovators (SBI) and Evolvence fund, with participation from Tiger Global, Prosus, Accel and Matrix Partners India.
Abhinav Sinha, Managing Director and Head of Technology and Telecoms at BII commented, “By supporting Captain Fresh, we are delighted to be able to reach and support more fishermen with improved economic opportunities, as well as to promote sustainable production and reduce wastage. We are also keen to support India’s food exports as a way to support global food security.”
Founded in 2019 by Utham Gowda, Captain Fresh has offices in India, US, Dubai, Paris, Oslo, Amsterdam and Madrid.
Its product portfolio includes over 100 species of fish and seafood, sourced from over a dozen countries globally and catering to customers in over 30 countries.
The startup recently completed the acquisition of a 40-year-old, Paris based, shrimp cooker and distributor, Senecrus, as part of its EU Expansion strategy. It seeks to bolster its distribution presence in the region through a series of acquisitions and joint ventures.
