The board of Info Edge has approved an investment of up to Rs 1,000 crore in IE Venture Investment Fund III, to be launched by Sebi registered Karkardooma Trust, a Category II AIF, the company said through an exchange filing on February 5.
The investment is in line with Info Edge's strategy on external financial investments focused on value creation for the medium to long term.
Info Edge will "...commit contribution of up to Rs 1,000 crore in aggregate, directly or through wholly owned subsidiaries, subject to approval of SEBI and shareholders of the Company," the statement said. The contribution into the AIF can be made by Info Edge directly, or through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, via multiple drawdowns by the fund over the years.
Smartweb Internet, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Info Edge, will be the sponsor and investment manager of the trust and its schemes. The AIF would be regarded as a related party of the company and the term of the AIF scheme shall be 12 years from the agreement, which may be extended by up to two years after approval.
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"Since the transaction qualifies as material related party transaction, it would be subject to shareholders’ approval. Promoters of the Company have no interest in the said investment," Info Edge statement added.
Info Edge has held AIF investments through three major funds in the past - Info Edge Venture Capital, Info Edge Capital and Capital 2B, with investment corpus of around Rs 1,500 crore, Rs 1,272 crore and Rs 638 crore respectively, its annual report for FY24 said. These AIFs focus on consumer tech companies and IP-led businesses.
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The company has sizeable holdings in Zomato, PB Fintech, Shopkirana and Adda247, which the company holds through its balance sheet and claims is for long-term value creation. As of March 2024, the market value of Info Edge's holding in listed entities stood at over Rs 28,300 crore.
Info Edge's investment in Zomato dates back to 2010, with an initial capital of less than Rs 5 crore, and over the years, Zomato received multiple rounds of funding. At the time of IPO in 2021, Info Edge had a near 18% stake in Zomato, what was part diluted.
As of FY24, Info Edge held financial investments through AIFs in Truemeds, Shiprocket, Bluestone and Matter Motors. Info Edge also has strategic investments in startups like Zwayam, DoSelect and Coding Ninjas.
"The Company prioritises early-stage investments, targeting Seed, Pre-Series A, or Series A funding rounds, aiming to be the first institutional investor in these businesses," said Info Edge through in its FY24 annual report.
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