Id8Labs, the digital marketing agency, is on the verge of acquiring a Chennai based initiative, founder Amit Tripathi told contentSutra. The acquisition - of a company with IPR being run by a team of IITans - will primarily be funded by cash and stock. Tripathi says that Id8Labs has crossed 400 percent in topline growth and the business franchise is $9 Million through acquisitions and consolidation. So why is Id8Labs trying to raise as much as $6-8 million then...for more acquisitions? No, says Tripathi: the money will be used only for organic growth, while the acquisitions will be cash and stock based, though internal accruals. Tripathi says he can’t talk about it yet, but when they do announce why they’re looking to raise the money, we’ll understand why. Any guesses? (there’s a tip box in the right column)

Id8Labs is looking to open offices via joint ventures in Dubai and Bangkok. They currently have a small office in Philadelphia, and an overall strength of around 100 employees. I’d called Tripathi to find out why they’ve actually issued a press release saying they’re looking to raise funds, while already being in talks with VC and PE players - can’t it be a deal breaker? He said that the release was primarily “an advertisement” (I figured that) to attract more investors before they finalize a deal. They’ve appointed Viedea Capital Advisors to assist with fund-raising and hope to close a deal by June. This appears to be a boom-time for digital agencies in India, and as is the case during boom-time, there’s a glut in the market. Question is - are the publishers benefiting?

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