Mumbai: Audio streaming platform Pocket FM has appointed Goldman Sachs to raise $100-150 million to fund its global expansion and strengthen its technology, three people familiar with the matter said.

“The round is likely to have a primary and secondary component where some of the earlier investors may look to sell,” one of them said, adding that the terms are yet to be finalized.

“The transaction was formally launched a couple of weeks back and several global private equity firms have been sounded out as the company plans to strengthen its international operations,” a second person said.

Pocket FM and Goldman Sachs declined to comment.

In February, Pocket FM outlined plans to raise more than $100 million to bolster its offerings on the back of robust artificial intelligence (AI) prospects, according to a Bloomberg report.

The latest fundraise comes over a year after the company raised $103 million in a series D funding round led by Lightspeed Ventures and Stepstone Group in March 2024, when its valuation nearly doubled to about $750 million.

At the time, Pocket FM had said it planned to use the proceeds towards bolstering its presence in the US, Europe, and Latin America, and shore up its content library and create a strong IP (intellectual property) playbook for its writers.

Towards profitability

Founded by Rohan Nayak, Nishanth K.S, and Prateek Dixit in 2018, Pocket FM also counts Goodwater Capital, Tanglin Venture Partners, Naver, Times Internet, and Tencent among its investors.

Its competitors include Spotify and new-age content platforms like Krafton-backed Kuku FM and Pratilipi.

To diversify its storytelling offerings, Pocket FM recently launched a bite-sized online novel app called Pocket Novel, AI-first webcomics platform Pocket Tools, and rebranded the parent entity as Pocket Entertainment.

Pocket FM has said it uses an AI-led strategy for automation, content curation, production, and distribution, and that it planned to leverage generative AI to scale up its offerings and personalize user experience.

Earlier this year, co-founder Nayak said the company was profitable at an operational level with its 2024-25 revenue rising to ₹1,768 crore from ₹1,051.97 crore in the year prior. In FY24, Pocket FM narrowed its losses to ₹165 crore from ₹208 crore in FY23.

The company has undertaken multiple rounds of layoffs over the last year to optimize costs and become profitable, according to a Moneycontrol report. Pocket FM laid off about 75 employees in January after letting go of 50 people in October 2024.