Early-stage VC firm Antler launches ONDC-focused platform for founders

Antler said its platform will offer pre-seed capital of $3,00,000 (around Rs 2.5 crore) which will help founders in the initial stages.

Early-stage venture capital (VC) firm Antler has launched a new platform to help founders build for the open network for digital commerce (ONDC). Infosys chairman Nandan Nilekani’s Foundation for Interoperability in Digital Economy (formerly Beckn Foundation) will collaborate with the VC firm.

ONDC, which is the government-backed ecommerce network, has seen rapid adoption with its presence now increasing to about 620 cities, with plans to double down on Tier 2 and beyond regions. There were over 1.1 million retail orders on ONDC cumulatively since its inception last year.

Antler said its platform will offer pre-seed capital of $3,00,000 (around Rs 2.5 crore) which will help founders in the initial stages. The VC firm added that it will also provide another $2,00,000 (about Rs 1.6 crore) from key partners, which includes unicorn founders and other strategic backers in the Antler network, to teams that are ready with an idea for a business on ONDC.

'Best resources'

While it was still early days, Antler feels around 15 startups will be able to make the cut, which means around $7.5-8 million will be pumped back towards the founders. Antler was also willing to invest as high as $10 million to support founders building for ONDC.

“We are excited to see founders building at population scale in themes like complex commerce, vernacular commerce and flow-based lending, to name a few. The Antler ONDC platform will provide everything from the best resources to a vibrant community and seed capital for them,” said Nitin Sharma, Partner at Antler India.

At present only 6 percent of MSMEs are active sellers on digital platforms. With ONDC, there is potential for the base to grow to 30-40 percent over the next decade, Sharma added.

Nandan Nilekani, Chairman Infosys and Ekstep Foundation, said e-commerce won’t be limited to a few players like in the current setup. “Everyone, every supplier including kirana stores, grocery retailers, electronics retailers, small vendors, and restaurants should participate in the digital marketplace on an open platform.”