| | SEPTEMBER 20228IN FOCUSIN FOCUSSIGMOID RAISES $12 MILLION TO SCALE ITS DATA ENGINEERING & ANALYTICS PLATFORMSigmoid, a start-up helping firms in the US, UK & Europe comb through their data and derive better insights from it, has raised $12 million in a new financing round following a strong year of growth, it said. Sequoia Capital India led the San Francisco-headquartered start-up's Series B funding, which included some secondary shares purchase, the two said. The investment giant, who unveiled $2.85 billion funds earlier this year for India and Southeast Asia, has invested $19.3 million in Sigmoid to date, according to a statement.Founded in 2013 by IIT alumni Lokesh Anand, Mayur Rustagi and Rahul Kumar Singh, Sigmoid offers analytics and AI solutions to companies around the globe. Firms operating in consumer goods and financial services categories are some of Sigmoid's largest customers, the startup said. Sigmoid's journey has been remarkable. It has been in the market for about nine years, but says it initially took some time to find its `true solution-market fit' Anand, who serves as its Chief Executive, told TechCrunch in an interview. As you can expect from the nature of this news item, the startup has since found its pace, expanding its revenue by more than 30 times since 2018 and making 2x growth in just one year, he said, without sharing specific figures. Sigmoid sees traditional players including Accenture, Infosys & Cognizant as some of its key competitors in the market. Nonetheless, it believes that its mix of people, process and technology make it a different entity altogether. "Our focus is very heavily on the engineering data products. So, bringing that engineering component in analytics has helped us differentiate and not only differentiate but deliver true value to our customers", said Anand.Sigmoid has a team of over 500 people, aiming to double down in the next 12-18 months. About 80 percent of the start-up's current workforce is in India, with rest spread over the US, the UK & Europe. About three-fourths of the startup's business comes from the US, he said. It works largely with Fortune 500 corporations. A leading Fortune 500 FMCG company received an 11 percent improvement in its return on marketing investments, Anand said of the customers' performance. Sigmoid plans to deploy the fresh funds to strengthen its offerings, build new capabilities, broaden delivery centers and enhance its sales, he said.Currently, Sigmoid has its primary center in Bangalore, along with the ones in the US, Bay Area, Dallas and New York & Amsterdam. It is planning to open one center in the UK later this year and increase its headcount across all centers, Anand said. "The team at Sigmoid, which stands out for its data and AI engineering excellence, are well-positioned to capture this opportunity. As long-term partners, we are excited to double down on their goal to be the premier engineered data solutions and AI provider for accelerating digital transformation for enterprises across industries", said Anandamoy Roychowdhary, principal, Sequoia Southeast Asia, in a prepared statement. SIGMOID RAISES $12 MILLION TO SCALE ITS DATA ENGINEERING & ANALYTICS PLATFORM
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