The startup scene in India is booming, and there are more startups around than one could care could count. While the funding climate has become more austere, there’s still plenty of money around for those with a good idea and a solid team. Venture Capitalists had a busy time last year, funding startups at all stages of their life cycles. Here are some of the top Venture Capital firms in India from last year.
1. Nexus Venture Partners: Nexus calls itself the “most entrepreneur friendly” venture capital firm in India, and says it has a deep sense of empathy for the entrepreneur. They have offices in India and Silicon Valley, from which they invest in early and growth stage enterprises. Some of their big investments include Delhivery, Snapdeal and Housing.
2. Helion Ventures: Founded in 2006, Helion Ventures is an early to mid-stage, India focused venture fund with over $600 million under management. It invested in 16 companies in 2015. Some of the members of its portfolio are MakeMyTrip, YepMe and TaxiForSure. Its exists in the internet space have made it one of the top venture capital firms in India.
3. Matrix Partners: Since its inception in 1977, Matrix Partners had a proven track record of backing successful companies. 50 of its companies have offered IPOs, and 75 have had successful acquisitions. Its India arm focuses on early-stage software and communications companies, and counts Quikr, LimeTray and Ola among its investments.
4. India Quotient: Launched in 2012, India Quotient is an early stage fund with a corpus of Rs. 30 crore. The fund, interestingly, claims to “fund companies that not too many seem to like”. “We don’t care if it looks ugly, as long as it promises to grow like weed.”, it declares on its website. Some of its funded companies include Grabhouse, Roposo and Dogspot.
5. Kalaari Capital: Another entry into the top venture capital firms in India is Kalaari Capital. Kalaari is an early-stage, technology-focused venture capital firm with $650 million in assets under management. Founded in 2006, it counts UrbanLadder, Snapdeal, Zivame among its investments.
6. SAIF Partners: Investing in India since 2001, SAIF Partners has assets under management of $2 billion. 5 of its companies have gone the IPO route in India, and 3 have touched valuations of $1 billion. The fund invests in a wide variety of companies. BookMyShow, MakeMyTrip and Paytm are some of the big names in its portfolio.
7. IDG Ventures: With more than $4 billion in its kitty, IDG Ventures India is an India-focused technology fund specializing in startups, early stage, growth stage and expansion stage companies. It made 32 deals in India in 2015, and counts Yatra, Myntra and Zivame among its invested companies.
8. Accel Partners: Founded in 1983, Accel Partners has global presence in Palo Alto, London , New York, China and India. It usually invests in internet technology companies. Some of the biggies in its roster are Flipkart, Myntra and Freshdesk.
9. Tiger Global: Headquartered in New York, Tiger Global has offices in Beijing and Mumbai. It invests in a wide variety of internet companies. Its India portfolio contains a host familiar names, including ShopClues, Grofers, Ola, Flipkart and Inshorts.
10. Sequoia Capital: “We help the daring build legendary companies”, is Sequoia’s proud motto. Some of its prominent Indian investments include TinyOwl, Roadrunnr, and Mobikwik. Having completed a whopping 46 deals in 2015, Sequoia Capital was the most prolific venture capital firm in India in 2015.