Raptee, a prominent electric motorcycle manufacturer, has successfully raised $3 million in a pre-series A funding round led by deep-tech VC fund Bluehill Capital.
The round witnessed participation from industry luminaries, including Eugene Mayne, Founder and CEO of Tristar Global (UAE), Lakshmi Narayanan, Former CEO of Cognizant, and Ramesh Kannan, Managing Director of Kaynes Technology, among others from India and the UAE.
The newly acquired funds will be used for the manufacturing facility, acquiring essential machinery and tooling for the company’s upcoming motorcycle launch and expanding the team’s capabilities.
Raptee is a comprehensive electric motorcycle manufacturer with a robust indigenous technological foundation. The company has filed for over 45 patents to date.
Dinesh Arjun, Co-founder CEO, Raptee, said, “India is the largest motorcycle market in the world, with EV adoption on the rise. At Raptee, we want to launch a motorcycle in a mid-premium segment for consumers who believe that EVs are a true upgrade from ICE vehicles. We are extremely fortunate to be backed by investors from the manufacturing and transportation industries who understand long-term value creation and can add strategic value for us as we gear up for production and scale-up. This being our first institutional round, we’re also proud to be backed by a DeepTech VC, Bluehill Capital. We’ve been refining and testing our vehicles, and the results are very promising. We are looking forward to launching it very soon.”
Manu Iyer, CEO & Partner, Bluehill Capital, said, “We strongly share the vision of the Raptee team to build world-class core EV technology right here in Chennai, India in a focused and cost-effective manner. Dinesh and his co-founders have diligently built the vehicle platform indigenously with intellectual property on various aspects of the vehicle sub-system. Having evaluated over 30 EV OEMs in India and having invested deeply in the EV and clean-tech ecosystem in India, we are impressed by Raptee’s cutting-edge tech and are excited to partner with them on their journey. We believe Raptee’s motorcycles will change the face of EV 2-wheelers in India,”
Raptee is the first Indian two-wheeler EV OEM to introduce high-voltage drive train technology, complemented by an onboard charger. This advancement renders it compatible with the rapidly growing CCS2 public charging network, which currently boasts over 9000 installed chargers in India, a figure comparable to the number of fuel pumps.
The high-voltage technology integrated into Raptee motorcycles ensures a much safer battery pack and extends battery life, effectively addressing range anxiety.
Earlier this year, Raptee was the sole OEM to receive a grant from ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India), the authoritative certifying body for automobiles in India, towards designing and developing high-voltage powertrain technology. The company anticipates the debut of its first motorcycle in early 2024, with experience centres in Chennai and Bangalore, followed by expansion into eight additional cities by the end of the inaugural year.
Raptee has already commenced R&D efforts for its following line of products and is preparing to augment the team size to 150 by its business strategy. The commendable progress made by Raptee has garnered recognition from the Tamil Nadu Government, resulting in the allocation of a 36-acre property for the company, along with other incentives to support manufacturing expansion.
Raptee has steadily expanded its team to over 50 members in the past year. The company’s swift advancement and visionary approach have led to the onboarding of esteemed suppliers for motorcycle components and seasoned industry leaders, promising quality delivery and streamlined turnaround times as production scales up.
Raptee has established its inaugural factory in Chennai, spanning three acres, which will serve as the primary hub for most of Raptee’s Research and Development team. With an annual capacity of 100,000 units, the facility will house on-site development and testing facilities and a dedicated battery pack assembly line. The projected investment for this factory is approximately INR 800 million crore.
Raptee’s EV motorcycle is slated for launch early next year, with plans to expand to 100 cities in India and explore select international markets conducive to their growth over the next three years.
Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Sells 568,000 Units In September
- By MT Bureau
- October 02, 2025
Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, a leading two-wheeler manufacturer, has reported wholesales of 568,164 units in September, which was 3 percent lower than 583,633 units sold last year.
The company’s domestic sales came at 505,693 units, down 6 percent, as compared to 536,391 units, while exports came at 62,471 units, up 32 percent YoY.
For H1 FY2026 (April–September 2025), HMSI's cumulative total sales reached just under three million units at 2.99 million units. This comprised 2.67 million units in the domestic market and 311,517 units exported globally.
Hero MotoCorp Sales Grows 8% In September
- By MT Bureau
- October 02, 2025
Hero MotoCorp, the world’s largest two-wheeler manufacturer, has reported its wholesales for September 2025 and YTD FY2026.
The company sold a total of 687,220 two-wheelers in September, which marked a 7.87 percent as compared to 637,050 units last year. This included 626,217 motorcycles, up 4.8 percent YoY and 61,003 scooters, up 54 percent YoY. On the exports front, the company shipped 39,638 units, as compared to 20,344 units last year.
The strong monthly performance contributed to steady growth, a trend rooted in the strategic diversification of the product portfolio, including 12 new scooters and motorcycles launched since the last festive season. The month’s dispatch performance coincided with a major milestone: Hero MotoCorp became the first Indian company to surpass the 125 million cumulative two-wheeler production mark.
Hero MotoCorp stated that positive momentum is visible across the business. Showroom and dealership footfalls have more than doubled compared to the festive season last year, driven by the festive spirit and new GST benefits, with significant traction observed in the high-volume commuter segment.
The company’s electric vehicle business, Vida, powered by Hero, continued its strong growth trajectory, recording 12,736 VAHAN registrations in September 2025. This performance, led by the recently launched Vida VX2 Evooter, resulted in a sharp YoY EV market share rise from 4.7 percent to 12.2 percent, underscoring growing consumer trust in the brand. The company noted that demand for Vida currently remains ahead of supply in several key markets, indicating robust traction for its EV business this festive season.
Suzuki Motorcycle India Sales Grows 37% In September
- By MT Bureau
- October 01, 2025
Suzuki Motorcycle India (SMIPL), one of the leading two-wheeler manufacturers, has reported strong sales for September 2025, buoyed by the start of the festive season and recent tax reforms.
The two-wheeler subsidiary of Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan, recorded total sales of 123,550 units, marking 25 percent over the 99,185 units sold in September 2024.
Domestic sales were the primary growth driver, with SMIPL registering a robust 37 percent YoY growth with 105,886 units sold in September, up from 77,263 units in the same month last year.
Deepak Mutreja, Vice-President – Sales & Marketing, Suzuki Motorcycle India, said, “September has been a remarkable month for SMIPL. The festive cheer translated into strong demand driving 37 percent growth in our domestic sales. The recent GST reduction has further added to customer enthusiasm, by making our two-wheelers even more affordable. We are optimistic that this momentum will continue through the festive season and beyond, enabling us to serve a larger customer base with our trusted motorcycles and scooters.”
Further complementing the sales performance, SMIPL recorded its highest ever spare parts sale of INR 881 million for the third consecutive month, registering a 17 percent YoY growth.
While domestic sales soared, exports saw a reduction. SMIPL exported 17,664 units in September 2025, compared to 21,922 units exported during September 2024.
Royal Enfield Achieves All-Time High Sales In September, Driven By Festive Demand
- By MT Bureau
- October 01, 2025
Royal Enfield has announced its highest-ever monthly sales figure, with 124,328 motorcycles sold globally in September 2025. This marks a significant 43 percent growth compared to the 86,978 units sold in the same month last year.
Domestic sales drove the record performance, reaching 113,573 units in September 2025, which marked a 43 percent increase over the 79,325 units sold domestically last year.
B. Govindarajan, Managing Director, Eicher Motors and Chief Executive Officer, Royal Enfield, said, “It has been an incredible start to the festive season for us at Royal Enfield, we have registered our best ever monthly sales volume and have crossed 100,000+ retail volumes for the month. To make sure that our customers take home their favourite Royal Enfield motorcycle this festive season, we have put in considerable effort.”
"In the month of September, we announced the upgraded Meteor 350 which has received a promising response from our community. All our new and existing motorcycles continue to perform well, we are confident of the growth momentum and are looking forward to a great year ahead,” he added.
For H1 FY2026, the company's total sales volume reached 591,903 motorcycles, reflecting a 30 percent growth over the 454,780 units sold in the previous year. This includes 521,482 units in the domestic market, registering a 27 percent growth compared to the 410,843 units sold in the corresponding period last year.
On the exports front, the company also saw a major boost, with 10,755 motorcycles shipped in September 2025, a 41 percent increase from 7,653 units in September 2024. For H1 FY2026, exports surged by 60 percent, reaching 70,421 units.
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