The fund will assist four-five start-ups each year and intends to lead or co-lead $25-40 million rounds
Fundamentum Partnership raised $227m to invest in the early growth stage Indian start-ups (Credit: Gerd Altmann from Pixabay)
Indian venture capital firm Fundamentum Partnership has raised $227m for its second fund to invest in the early growth stage Indian start-ups.
The company is expecting to fund firms that have achieved product-market fit and have gained momentum in their scale-up journey.
The fund is anticipated to assist four-five start-ups each year and intends to lead or co-lead $25-40m rounds.
Fundamentum co-founder and general partner Nandan Nilekani said: “In this decade, we will see entrepreneurs making a material impact on the country at scale as the digital intensity of society increases. We are in the early stages of that journey.
“At Fundamentum, we tested the waters with the first fund. We now intend to go deeper into our investment program, focus on Entrepreneurs creating built-to-last companies out of India, and steadfastly support them in their exciting journey.”
Fundamentum is said to concentrate on tech-driven companies in India that operate in the consumer internet and business software sectors.
It intends to aid the early growth stage Indian start-ups that can move from the start-up phase to the scale-up phase.
Fundamentum co-founder and general partner Ashish Kumar said: “There are two key advantages that Fundamentum brings. First, it is an ‘Entrepreneur Venture’, with an experienced team of former entrepreneurs. We can leverage our own experience to contribute to the early-growth stage companies that we are investing in.
“Second, this stage is still very under-served in India and needs on-the-ground, homegrown investors for a fleet-footed approach and robust operational diligence. We have a healthy pipeline and are seeing over 200 deals a year with an aim to invest in 4-5 start-ups every year.”
Founded in 2017, Fundamentum is a homegrown scale-up fund building enduring technology companies.
The company’s first round of funding was invested in early-stage start-ups, including Pharmeasy and Spinny, which have attained unicorn status.
Following the fund’s initial investment, the portfolio companies of Fundamentum have raised more than $1bn in follow-on rounds.
Fundamentum co-founder and general partner Sanjeev Aggarwal said: “The second fund is significantly oversubscribed. We plan to continue the same strategy as used in Fund I – investing in tech-driven enterprises from India. Entrepreneur quality is the single biggest determinant in the success of a company.
“We like to back missionary entrepreneurs who have an unwavering focus on customer experience. A strengthened team and focus on emerging sectors such as Bharat Apps, SaaS and Clean-tech, among others, will enable us to propel the growth of our investee firms.”