Monster.com raises about Rs 137 crore in funding led by Akash Bhanshali, Mohandas Pai

Business services provider Quess Corp on Wednesday said group firm Monster.com, an online talent platform, has raised up to Rs 137.5 crore in a funding round led by Akash Bhanshali of Volrado Venture Partners and Mohandas Pai of Meridian Investments.

Quess Corp also participated in the funding round. After the funding round, Monster.com is valued at close to USD 100 million (around Rs 755 crore). The current close has been done at Rs 112.5 crore with an option built-in to expand the round to Rs 137.5 crore, Quess Corp said in a regulatory filing.  The funds raised will be used for enhancing investments in product development and marketing in India, South East Asia and Middle East markets and help Monster.com evolve from a job-board into a talent platform, delivering a full-stack experience for both candidates and companies, it added.

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Commenting on the fundraise, Monster.com CEO the Asia Pacific and the Middle East, Sekhar Garisa said, “The participation of visionary investors with long term outlook is a tremendous vote of confidence in Monster’s ability and vision in building India’s premier talent marketplace platform”. Last year, the company achieved very healthy growth across all metrics, he said, adding “we have an exciting product and business road map in line with our view on how hiring will evolve in the next few years.

Pai said the platform is poised to “redefine the jobs market by building tech workflows that put the candidate at the centre of the universe of innovation and possibilities”. Stating that the next two years will see a huge increase in available jobs, thanks to high economic growth, he said “job seekers will find a high-quality platform to plan their careers here”. “As employers also prepare for a new decade and an employee-first mindset, the platform will help them create a differentiated experience and build deeper relationships with their teams from day one. Meridian Investments is proud to partner with Monster.com in this exciting and important vertical,” Pai added.

Quess Corp had acquired Monster.com’s businesses in India, Singapore, Malaysia, Philippines, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, UAE and Saudi Arabia in 2018, as a strategic investment to strengthen its HR services portfolio by establishing end-to-end offerings across the employee lifecycle management space.