- Chiratae Ventures invests in highly scalable, tech-enabled companies that work to achieve significant impact for underserved consumers, employees and suppliers in India.
- CDC’s investment will support the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, particularly goals 8 and 10.
CDC Group, the UK’s publicly owned impact investor, has committed US$10 million to Chiratae Ventures’ Fund IV to support the growth of highly scalable, tech-enabled companies in India.
Chiratae Ventures India Advisors has established itself as India’s leading homegrown technology venture capital funds advisory firm since it was founded in 2006, having advised four funds in their investments in over 85 start-ups and delivered over 35 exit transactions. The firm targets companies whose technologically disruptive solutions and scale-up potential can reach large parts of the Indian population, helping to increase economic opportunities and market participation for the next 400 million Indian consumers, employees, and suppliers.
Chiratae’s investments will create large-scale employment for underserved groups and increase the availability, affordability and accessibility of goods and services. Funds advised by Chiratae have backed market-leading companies in India, including Flipkart, Cure.Fit, FirstCry, Bounce, Myntra(acquired by Flipkart), Lenskart, ForusHealth, Uniphore, PlaySimple, HealthifyMe, Agrostar, Cropin, Manthan, NewGen (NSE: NEWGEN) and PolicyBazaar, and will focus primarily on early stage investments but have the flexibility to invest at seed and expansion stages, backing companies in Deep-tech, consumer media and tech, software, fintech and health tech.
CDC’s commitment falls under its South Asia Venture Scale-up programme, which aims to invest in early-stage companies that leverage technology and innovative business models to achieve transformational impact at scale. Our strategy is aligned to partnering with funds and their investees that harness technology to deliver a high number of goods and services at reduced costs for regional populations that lack access and are often excluded from the market.
Sudhir Sethi, Founder and Chairman, Chiratae Ventures, noted: “CDC’s commitment to Chiratae Ventures’ Fund IV is a show of confidence in India’s innovative ecosystem as well as the Chiratae team and track record of superior returns and exits year after year. We look forward to working closely with our new partner to invest in technology differentiated companies solving for challenges faced by India using technology as a disruptor, enabling them to scale in India and go global.”
Srini Nagarajan, Managing Director and Head of Asia, said:
“I am delighted to announce CDC’s first commitment to Chiratae, one of India’s top venture capital firms. This investment will help generate tangible impact at scale by capitalising on the country’s world-class entrepreneurial potential.
Committing to Chiratae is part of our strategy to back tech-enabled businesses that have the potential to address development challenges in sectors such as food & agriculture, healthcare and education to reduce costs, improve market access and economic participation. We look forward to this partnership with Chiratae.”
Read about the investment on LiveMint
ENDS
Notes to Editors
Media Contact:
CDC: Toyosi Adebayo / M. +44 (0) 7880 372 305
About CDC
- CDC Group is the UK’s first impact investor with over 70 years of experience of successfully supporting the sustainable, long-term growth of businesses in South Asia and Africa.
- CDC is a leading player in the fight against climate change and a UK champion of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals – the global blueprint to achieve a better and more sustainable future for us all.
- The company has investments in over 1,200 businesses in emerging economies and a total portfolio value of £5.8bn. Last year CDC will invest over $2bn in companies in Africa and Asia with a focus on fighting climate change, empowering women, and creating new jobs and opportunities for millions of people.
- CDC is funded by the UK government and all proceeds from its investments are reinvested to improve the lives of millions of people in Africa and South Asia.
- CDC’s expertise makes it the perfect partner for private investors looking to devote capital to making a measurable environmental and social impact in countries most in need of investment.
About Chiratae Ventures
Launched in 2006, Chiratae Ventures India Advisors (formerly IDG Ventures India) is India’s leading technology Venture Capital funds advisor. The funds advised by Chiratae Ventures India Advisors collectively have over $775 M under management and 85+ investee companies across Consumer Media & Tech, Deep-tech, Cloud/Software, Health-tech and Fin-tech. Notable portfolio companies include Bounce, Cure.Fit, FirstCry, Flipkart, Forus, Lenskart, Manthan, Myntra (acquired by Flipkart), NestAway, Newgen (NSE: NEWGEN), PolicyBazaar, Rentomojo, Unbxd, HealthifyMe and Yatra (NASDAQ: YTRA) among others. www.chiratae.com
