Venture Capital Firms in India is an essential part of the startup ecosystem. Once a startup has reached its growth stage, its most important requirement is undoubtedly the backing of reliable investors and an ample amount of funding to scale. Although the startup concept has gained momentum recently.
The small number of investors willing to show their confidence and invest in startups has been a problem for startups. Many startups find it difficult to approach venture capitalists and many times the investor’s investment structure is inappropriate for the startup.
Top Venture Capital Firms in India
- Sequoia Capital
- Accel
- Blume Companies
- Elevation Capital
- Tiger Global Management
- Kalaari of Kalaari
- Matrix Partners
- Nexus Venture Partners
- Indian Angels Network
- Omidyar Network India
Sequoia Venture Capital Firms
Founded in 1972, Sequoia Capital is an American venture capital firm in California, USA. Since its inception, it has invested in more than 1,000 companies, including Apple, Google, Github, LinkedIn, Yahoo, WhatsApp, Oracle, etc. Sequoia select 15 to 20 startup every six month & invests $1 million to $2 million with the participation of other investor. It has $5.4 billion of assets under management in India, spread across seven fund.
| Founder | Donald T. Valentine |
| Founded in | 1972 |
| Deals | 245+ (FY20) |
| Notable Investments | Apple, Google, Oracle, Nvidia, GitHub, PayPal, LinkedIn, Stripe, Bird, YouTube, Instagram, Yahoo!, PicsArt, Klarna, and WhatsApp |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture, Seed |
| Website | www.sequoiacap.com |
Accel Venture Capital Firms
Headquartered in Palo Alto, California, USA, Accel is a venture capital firm that operates funds in India, the UK, and China. Accel currently manages over $1.6 billion AUM and closed nearly six funds in India. Accel has financed Indian companies like Flipkart, Swiggy, Blackbuck, Cure.fit etc. The company focuses on established businesses that require larger amount of capital to expand their operation.
| Founder | Jim Swartz, Arthur Patterson |
| Founded in | 1983 |
| Deals | 232+ |
| Notable Investments | Freshworks, Swiggy, BlackBuck, Bounce, BookMyShow, Flipkart |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage Venture, Late Stage Venture, Seed |
| Subsidiaries | ACCEL PARTNERS LIMITED, Accel Partners Management LLP |
| Website | www.accel.com |
Blume Companies Venture Capital Firms
Headquartered in Mumbai, India, Blume Ventures is an early stage venture fund that aims to increase funding for startups in India. The company mainly focuses on technology companies & has invested in Series B to D round in Unacademy, Servify, etc. Blume Ventures has a total capital under management of nearly $225 million & has backed more than 150 startup.
| Founder | Karthik and Sanjay |
| Founded in | 2010 |
| Deals | 124+ |
| Notable Investments | Dunzo, Unacademy, Instamojo, Procol, HealthAssure, Milkbasket |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage Venture, Seed |
| Website | www.blume.vc |
Elevation Venture Capital Firms
Formerly known as SAIF Partners, Elevation Capital is a scenario & sector agnostic private equity firms. Headquartered in Gurugram, India, the company makes minor investment in early stage, seed stage & mature companies. You have already invested in companies like Paytm, ShareChat, Swiggy, MakeMyTrip, Just Dial, etc.
| Founder | Andrew Yan |
| Founded in | 2001 |
| Deals | 100+ |
| Notable Investments | Capital Float, Firstcry, Swiggy, IndustryBuying, Aye Finance, Rivigo, Cleartax |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Stage Agnostic, Private Equity |
| Website | www.elevationcapital.com |
Tiger Global Management Venture Capital Firms
Tiger Global Management LLC is a venture capital firm that invests in high-quality FinTech, consumer and software companies. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in New York, the company has invested in more than 442 companies worldwide with 7 designated fund. In India, it has invested in more than 97 startup including Flipkart, Moglix, Urban Company, etc.
| Founder | Chase Coleman III |
| Founded in | 2001 |
| Deals | 97 |
| Notable Investments | Urban Company, Flipkart, Moglix, OPEN, Ninjacart, Razorpay |
| Key Sectors | Internet, Software, Consumer, Financial Technology |
| Stage | Growth, Late Stage, Private Equity, Post- IPO |
| Website | www.tigerglobal.com |
Kalaari of Kalaari Venture Capital Firms
Kalaari Capital mainly focuses on technology companies in India and has made more than 92 investments in 3 fund in companies including Myntra, Snapdeal, Jumbotail, Cashkaro, etc. The company has come out of companies like Myntra & Snapdeal and partially from Zivame. Founded in Bangalore in 2006, Kalaari Capital manage AUM of $650 millions.
| Founder | Vani Kola |
| Founded in | 2006 |
| Deals | 92 |
| Notable Investments | Cashkaro, Cure.fit, WinZO, Jumbotail, Milkbasket, Myntra, Snapdeal |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage |
| Website | www.kalaari.com |
Matrix Partners Venture Capital Firms
Matrix Partners, a US-based private equity investment firm, invest in startup & early stage companies in the US and India. Software, communications, semiconductors, data storage, etc. are the main focus of Matrix Partners. He has invested in MoEngage, Apple Computer, Office Club, etc. Matrix Partners is said to manage nearly $4 billion in assets under management AUM.
| Founder | Paul J. Ferri |
| Founded in | 1977 |
| Deals | 80 |
| Notable Investments | Avail Finance, Vogo, DailyNinja, Stanza Living, MoEngage |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage Venture, Seed |
| Website | www.matrixpartners.com |
Nexus Venture Partners Venture Capital Firms
Nexus Venture Partners is a venture capital firm based in Silicon Valley and Mumbai and is India & US first venture funds. It has helped a list of companies raise funds including Zomato, Rapido, Delhivery, WhiteHat jr etc. Nexus Venture Partner invest in early growth stage companies and had more than $1.4 billion in assets under managements as of fiscal 2019.
| Founder | Sandeep Singhal |
| Founded in | 2006 |
| Deals | 80 |
| Notable Investments | WhiteHat Jr, Delhivery, Rapido, Unacademy, Druva, Jumbotail, Bolo App, Pratilipi, Zomato |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage Venture, Seed |
| Website | www.nexusvp.com |
Indian Angels Network Venture Capital Firms
Indian Angel Network IAN is a group of Indian angel investors who finance startups. Founded in 2006 in Delhi, India, IAN is a SEBI registered early stage fund with more than 470 investors from 11 countries. The group has invested in companies including WebEngage, Druva, Box8, Faballey, Little Black Book, etc.
| Founder | Saurabh Srivastava, Padmaja Ruparel, Raman Roy |
| Founded in | 2006 |
| Deals | 80+ |
| Notable Investments | WebEngage, Druva, Box8, Faballey, Little Black Book |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage, Seed |
| Website | www.indianangelnetwork.com |
Omidyar Network India Venture Capital Firms
Omidyar Network India is a social impact investment firm that invest in startups that help inclusive societies for less privileged people. The company was founded in 2004 and has invested over $300 millions in the Indian startups ecosystem. Some of his key investments include Dailyhunt, Indifi Technologies, Needslist, Bounce, Platzi, Pratilipi, Healthkart, etc.
| Founder | Pierre Omidyar |
| Founded in | 2004 |
| Deals | 71+ |
| Notable Investments | Dailyhunt, Indifi Technologies, 1MG, Needslist, Bounce, Platzi, Doubtnut, WhiteHat Education Technology |
| Key Sectors | Agnostic |
| Stage | Early Stage, Seed Stage |
| Website | www.omidyarnetwork.in |
Key Characteristics of Venture Capital Investments
- High-risk funding
- High Tech projects
- Participation in Management
- Length of Investment
- Illiquid Investment
Venture capitalists typically provide financing to early stage startup despite the significant risk associated with the company future earnings & cash flow. They invest in exchange for an equity stake in the business rather than debt.
The Indian venture capital market has become an attractive investment destination. Investor have earned a 25 to 30% annual return over the past 5 to 6 year by investing in pre ipo stock. However, it can be risky to invest your hard earn money without market research and investment guidelines.
SBNRI is an online platform exclusively designed to meet the investment and transactional need of NRIs living around the worlds. SBNRI investment expert guide NRIs through the entire investment process.
What is a Venture Capital investment company?
A venture capital investment firms is an investment firm that invest in startup & advises them on their growth. Venture capital firms are typically made up of well-off investors, investment banks, and others financial institution.
How many venture capital firms are there in India?
There are more than 800 venture capital firm in India, as of 2022.
What are early stage venture capital firms?
Early stage venture capital firm are the venture capital firm that are generally known for supporting startup in their early stages of growth. These stages also include the startup phase when project are still in the market research & developments stage.
