Home Insight Funding Alert Aavishkaar Capital raises Rs 1,000 crore

[Funding alert] Aavishkaar Capital raises Rs 1,000 crore

Aavishkaar Capital
Aavishkaar Capital
Aavishkaar Capital

Aavishkaar Capital, the impact investing arm of the Aavishkaar Group, has raised $130 million (about ₹1000 crore) first close of its eighth impact fund.

A senior executive said the final closing of $200 million (or Rs 1,500 crore) is expected by the end of the current calendar year.

From this eighth fund, the group now has total assets under management of Rs 4,000 crore. This new fund is also 2x certified, meaning about 30% of the money is to be invested in companies with female founders or senior leadership roles, or with products for women that meet gender diversity goals.

The executive said the fund will also actively invest in companies that address issues such as climate change.

Mumbai-based Aavishkaar Capital was started in 2001 by Vineet Rai, It provides private equity and microfinance solutions for early-stage startups.

Tarun Mehta, the partner at Avishkar Capital, said that about 50% of the new funds have come from domestic investors like SIDBI, Self-Reliant India or SRI Fund, Max Life, Axis Bank, Family Office, and Ultra High net worth individuals among Others.

In addition, this new fund is anchored by British International Investment (formerly known as CDC Group plc) and the Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM AG).

The group will invest this fund in 13-15 businesses, large-scale micro, small and medium enterprises, with a focus on sustainable agri-tech, financial inclusion and climate technology, as key promoters of technology in key areas of essential services.

The Alternative India Fund-VI will be from Aavishkaar Capital partners Vineet Rai, Sushma Kaushik, Anurag Agrawal and Mehta.

“Aavishkaar’s proven track record in delivering impact positions it as an important co-investing partner with proven ability to facilitate greater financial support to India’s innovative entrepreneurs in businesses across sustainable agriculture, financial inclusion and essential services”, said, Srini Nagarajan, managing director and head of Asia, British International Investment.

Capital’s Fund V was a pool of ₹800 crores that had invested in more than 15 companies.

Since 2008, the group has invested in 62 companies and achieved partial or full exits from 38 portfolio firms.

“We have returned more than half of the capital that we raised since 2008,” Mehta added.

“Climate-tech emerged as the most active sector with the maximum number of deals (79). The research highlights that only one out of every five impact enterprises that have raised capital in the last three years (2019, 2020, 2021) are (co) founded by women,” it said.

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