Kriscore Capital on Thursday announced the first close of its debut Rs 100 crore fund after receiving initial commitments of Rs 50 crore from family offices and high net worth individuals.
The fund, which has a greenshoe option of Rs 100 crore, will look to invest in 16 to 18 technology-driven startups in the pre-seed and seed stages.
While sector agnostic, the fund will look to back companies building across key trend segments in the country, such as digital consumer, China+1 supply chain opportunities, global experts, Gen AI-powered services, and climate tech companies.
The VC firm said it has already made its first investment in a stealth-mode startup but did not disclose further details.
Kriscore Capital was founded by former WaterBridge Ventures executive, Nilesh Balakrishnan and former chairman and CEO of Lazard in India, K Bala.
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“India’s startup ecosystem is exploding, and Indian founders are building generational global businesses. Apart from technical prowess and team strength, enduring entrepreneurship needs an ecosystem of support, including financial expertise, capital firepower, compliance mentorship, and strategic global connectivity to build exceptional businesses. We invest more than capital – we commit our time, expertise, and passion to help founders build something truly groundbreaking.” said Balakrishnan, General Partner at Kriscore Capital.
The announcement comes at a time when a plethora of VC firms are in the process of raising new India-focused funds after completing their previous fund cycles. For example, Accel in January announced its $650 million fund. Other firms like Peak XV and Lightspeed Venture Partners have been reported to be in the market to raise more funds.
Additionally, after seeing lacklustre deal flow at the early stages last year, this segment is rising interest from VCs as second-time founders and a developing ecosystem pose attractive investment opportunities.
Edited by Affirunisa Kankudti
