Chingari, an Indian short video platform akin to TikTok, has raised $15 million in a funding round led by Republic Capital, the private venture arm of investment firm Republic, according to a report by an Indian business news outlet.

• Crypto exchange OKEx also made a strategic investment in the company. Chingari’s native token GARI will be listed on OKEx, the Economic Times reported on Monday.
• The token will also be listed on FTX, Huobi, Kucon, Gate.IO, MEXC Global.
• The funds will be used to enhance the app’s technology, introduce new features and grow the platform’s reach outside of non-metro cities in India, the report said.
• Following the banning of TikTok in India in June 2020, Chingari grew rapidly and now boasts over 35 million active users.
• Chingari’s focus has now turned towards enabling users to monetize their content with the use of crypto tokens and NFTs. As part of its previous funding round in October, Chingari also plans to launch its GARI token on the Solana blockchain.
• Chingari did not immediately respond to request for comment.

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