New Delhi, June 3 -- Education financing platform GyanDhan and sneaker brand Gully Labs have secured funding in separate early-stage rounds, the companies said on Tuesday.

GyanDhan

Education financing platform GyanDhan has raised Series A funding of Rs 50 crore from edtech firm Classplus and venture capital firm Pravega Ventures.

The company said it will use the funding to scale its operations and consultant partnership network, as well as invest in technology to help streamline the end-to-end student financing. It also aims to expand its physical presence to more than 50 Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, double financial institutions partnerships from 15 to 30 banks and NBFCs, and expand its teams across tech, credit, and sales to support regional scale.

GyanDhan was founded by Ankit Mehra and Jainesh Sinha. It provides a marketplace for education financing for Indian students in the country and abroad. The company claims to have driven Rs 7,000 crore in education loans originated to date and collaborated with over 100 education consultants who use its proprietary SaaS platform.

Gully Labs

Sneaker brand Gully Labs has secured Rs 8.7 crore in a seed round of funding, which comprises Rs 7.6 crore in equity and Rs 1.1 crore in venture debt, as the company diversifies the product mix, expanding sales channels, and opening physical retail stores.

The equity round was led by Zeropearl VC, with participation from a group of founders and angel investors including Vivekananda Hallekere (co-founder and CEO, Bounce), Suhasini Sampath (co-founder, Yogabar), among others, the New Delhi-based company said in a statement. Micro-funds Untitled Ventures and Atrium Ventures also participated in the round. The debt investment was led by Stride Ventures.

The investment will enable Gully Labs to build a larger production facility, broaden its product line across diverse sneaker styles, and deepen its reach across India and global markets. The company plans to launch exclusive retail outlets as part of its omni-channel strategy.

Founded in 2023 by Arjun Singh and Animesh Mishra, Gully Labs sells products like Phulkari embroidery-inspired sneakers to silhouettes referencing regional traditions and festivals. It makes handcrafted footwear which blends "Indian identity with modern flair", the company says.

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