Spiritual Tech Start-Up VAMA Raises ₹22 Cr in Pre-Series A Funding Round

Spitirual tech start-up VAMA has raised ₹22 crore in a pre-Series A funding round led by Wavemaker Partners. Some other marquee investors like 500 Global, Sadev Ventures, Venture Catalysts, Silverneedle Ventures, Alok Nanavaty, Harit Nagpal, Swati Parikh, and Mahesh Kamdar also participated in this fundraise.

The fresh capital will be used for expansion into new categories such as spiritual e-commerce and offline spiritual travel. Meanwhile, it also plans to launch services for the global NRI market. Wavemaker Partners had earlier backed VAMA in 2023 and has now doubled down on its conviction.

“We are building the infrastructure for spiritual experiences in the digital age. Replicating the impact that religious TV channels had on older generations, we envision becoming the one-stop digital platform for Gen-Z, offering high-engagement spiritual services, products, and experiences,” said Manu Jain, cofounder and CEO of VAMA.

Currently, temple services contribute 70% to VAMA’s revenue, with the remaining 30% coming from astrology and VAMA Mall. It claims to have 150,000 transacting users till date. The start-up further aims to take this number to one million in the next 24 months, while expanding its temple supply from 250 to 500.

The company has consistently been contribution margin positive, with margins above 10%, and expects to achieve EBITDA profitability as it doubles scale. It has doubled its revenue in FY24 to ₹19.5 crore.

“The spiritual services market is expected to reach over $100 billion in 10 years.  Digitisation, large scale adoption, convenience and access are the levers driving this market. It’s a deeply under penetrated market,” said Abishek Balendran, partner at Silverneedle Ventures.

Founded in late 2020 by Acharya Dev and Manu Jain, VAMA offers devotees across the world to access to authentic and transparent puja, astrology, and spiritual product services with the help of technology. So far, it has partnered with over 250 temples.

Redseer Strategy Consultants projects that India's online astrology sector will increase from $102-106 million in FY24 to $930-1070 million by FY30. Additionally, there is a $35 billion Indian market for faith and religious items that is ready for tech disruption in a variety of industries.

It also says that India's online astrology market, which is presently valued at $102-106 million, is predicted to double by FY30.