Yahoo, Canaan to invest in Bharat Matrimony

Yahoo Inc and Canaan Partners will jointly invest 8.65 million dollar in the Bharat Matrimony group.

Yahoo Inc and venture capital firm Canaan Partners will jointly invest 8.65 million dollar (nearly Rs 40 crore) in Bharat Matrimony group, which runs India's popular matrimony website by the same name.

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Canaan, which opened its Indian office in June, would be the lead investor in the 'A' round financing, which also includes Yahoo, a statement from Bharat Matrimony said on Wednesday.

"India is one of the key markets for Canaan Partners and we are looking at creating lasting partnerships in the technology space," Canaan's (India) Executive Director Allok Mittal said.

The company is very well positioned to continue to grow rapidly and maintain its leadership in the Indian internet landscape while continuing to be a highly valuable company from a social standpoint, he said.

"India has a huge population of 1.1 billion, and the market is ripe for investment opportunities in technology and technology enabled services," Canaan General partner Deepak Kamra said.

The investment underscores Canaan's ongoing commitment to early-stage internet-related deals in India, he said.

Bharat Matrimony, which operates a match-making portal, has a subscriber base of 7.5 million.