Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (May 19, 2025)

YourStory presents the daily news roundup from the Indian startup ecosystem and beyond. Here's the roundup for Monday, May 19, 2025.

May 19, 2025 - 17:10

Startup news and updates: Daily roundup (May 19, 2025)

From Cult.fit’s plans to double on its retail vertical to how Hocco is stirring up India’s ice cream market, YourStory brings today’s headlines that highlight significant developments across industries. Here’s a roundup of key stories:

Featured stories

Cult.fit goes in on fitness retail boom, looks to add 15-20 new stores this year

Cult.fit currently operates 14 stores across Bengaluru, Hyderabad, and Delhi, and also sells through its website, partner gyms, major online marketplaces, and, more recently, quick commerce via a tie-up with Zepto.

Cult.fit plans to open 15-20 new retail stores in the current year, continuing its expansion into fitness apparel and equipment, a segment the company sees as closely aligned with its core gym business.

Scoop 2.0: How Ankit Chona’s Hocco is stirring up India’s ice cream market

The startup, based in Gujarat, currently produces 40,000–50,000 litres of ice cream per day, and plans to increase that to 1.3 lakh litres daily by next summer. In FY24, Hocco posted a revenue of ₹200 crore, with a target of Rs 400 crore by FY26.

Hocco is betting on logistics infrastructure, in-home consumption, and product innovation to grow its presence in India’s competitive ice cream segment. A key part of Hocco’s strategy has been to invest in its own cold chain infrastructure rather than relying on third-party logistics providers. The company operates GPS-enabled, temperature-controlled trucks, in-house cold rooms, and a dedicated logistics team to manage distribution.

Folks Motor secures Rs 100 Cr

Folks Motor, an automotive company, has launched "Folks Funds," an Alternative Investment Fund (AIF) Category II, with an initial corpus of Rs 500 crore. Folks Funds is India's first ESG-focused investment fund catering to EV supply chains for its consolidation and to aggregate the demand of EV systems and components.

A significant portion of the fund will be allocated to developing "The Blue IP," India's first xEV-focused warehousing and industrial park in Sonipat, Haryana. This initiative is designed to support the EV ecosystem by providing state-of-the-art infrastructure for manufacturing and logistics.

Other news

BharatPe Launches Zillion Rewards

Fintech company BharatPe launched Zillion Rewards on its BharatPe UPI App. This loyalty programme allows consumers to earn Zillion Coins on all qualified UPI transactions. In particular, transactions made using RuPay Credit Cards via the BharatPe UPI App unlock benefits across the industry, making it an attractive proposition for consumers.

ProcMart Elevates Sachin Jain to Co-Founder

ProcMart, B2B marketplaces for indirect procurement, has announced the elevation of Sachin Jain to Co-Founder. This development underlines the company’s continued focus on strengthening leadership as it accelerates its journey toward building a future-ready, tech-enabled, and sustainable supply chain ecosystem.

Zepto appoints Rachit Ranjan as Chief Public Policy Officer

Quick commerce company Zepto appointed Rachit Ranjan as its Chief Public Policy Officer, effective May 2025. In this role, Rachit will build and lead Zepto’s policy, regulatory, and government affairs vertical.

Rachit joins Zepto with over 15 years of experience across public policy, government advisory, legal and regulatory affairs with a strong focus in the technology industry. An alumnus of University of California, Berkeley - School of Law and the National University of Juridical Sciences, he has previously held leadership roles at firms like Dream11, WhatsApp, JUUL Labs, Uber, among others.

Niyo introduces "24-hour doorstep delivery" in travel banking

Fintech platform, Niyo, has launched Niyo Express, a 24-hour doorstep delivery service for its international debit card, designed specifically for last-minute international travellers. The service is currently available across Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Pune and Bangalore. Keeping in mind the summer travel season, Niyo is offering this service completely free for a limited time period.

Paytm introduces 'Hide Payment' to privately mask selected transactions

Fintech company Paytm has introduced a new privacy-focused addition to its payment experience ‘Hide Payment’. This new capability allows individuals to privately hide and unhide selected transactions from their payment history, offering greater control over how their records are displayed, while keeping all transactions securely accessible whenever needed.

Indian Tourist Transporters Association (ITTA) partners with Lawyered

The Indian Tourist Transporters Association (ITTA), has recently announced its exclusive partnership with Lawyered, India’s leading legaltech platform, to provide instant and on-road legal assistance to tourist transport operators across India.

Tourist transport operators in India often navigate across states and balance passenger safety, service commitments, and vehicle compliance. They frequently encounter unexpected legal and regulatory hurdles on the road, from challans and permit checks to documentation issues without structured legal support at hand. ITTA and Lawyered recognised this critical gap and have undertaken the initiative to offer its members access to LOTS (Lawyer-On-The-Spot), a tech-enabled legal solution for the mobility ecosystem.

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