Accel, a global venture firm, is apparently in advanced talks to lead a funding round of $30-40 million in Truemeds, an Indian pharmacy that sells generic drugs online at affordable costs.

Talks are currently centered on a proposed valuation of about $330 million for the six-year-old, Mumbai-headquartered startup, according to these same sources, who requested anonymity as the deliberations are ongoing and private.

The deal hasn't finalized, so it may still not materialize or the terms can change, the sources cautioned. Accel and Truemeds didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

A round for Truemeds comes at an interesting time, considering that the online pharmacy sector has been consolidating and undergoing a sea change. Pharmeasy, once valued at as much as $5.6 billion, now hovers around $600 million, its valuation crashing following failures to repay a loan to Goldman Sachs.

According to the most recent mutual fund disclosures, the British American global asset firm, Janus Henderson, had indicated that at the end of June, Pharmeasy's valuation was around $458 million. Tata Digital acquired another significant player in the space, 1mg, last year in 2021.

Truemeds is out of the ordinary from its peers. The startup is looking to disrupt the supply chain of how medicine reaches customers by removing middlemen that increase the cost to the final customer. After the customers upload their prescriptions, Truemeds doctors prescribe generics that contain the same active ingredients as the prescription, made by Indian manufacturers. The service promises to cut medication costs, especially for those with chronic conditions who need continuous treatment.

The operations are fully online; consultations, ordering, and delivery are all done digitally. This means that patients will no longer be required to physically visit pharmacies, and they will be accessible and within reach by Truemeds.

If the fresh funding materializes, it will over double the valuation of Truemeds, which had received $132 million in an extended Series B round last year. Truemeds had initially raised its Series B round in funding from investors like WestBridge Capital and Info Edge Ventures at a valuation of $76.7 million by Tracxn, which is a venture insight platform.