Artha Group launches new micro venture capital fund of Rs 450 crore

Mumbai-based Artha Group of companies, on October 11, launched a new Rs 450 crore micro VC (venture capital) fund, Artha Select Fund (ASF). The group said the new micro VC fund will back top startups from Artha’s portfolio in their follow-on rounds.

The first term sheet under ASF is signed and the Fund will announce its first close with its first investment soon, the group said in a statement. Artha Group, however, did not disclose a definite timeline for the same.

The group also said that the Fund plans to invest Rs 20 crore in series B rounds and an additional Rs 20 crore in series C rounds on average, in startups where Artha is already an investor.

Led by Anirudh A Damani, a second-generation investor, the Artha Group added that with the new fund, it plans to back series B and C rounds in 12-14 startups. According to the group, ASF raised its first Rs 100 crore with investments from existing LPs (limited partners).

“...We see early-growth rounds as an amazing investment opportunity to back founders at a critical inflection point in their venture journey. With ASF, we provide our founders with the added firepower to chase sound business metrics like revenues, positive unit economics, and profitability,” said Anirudh A Damani, managing partner of Artha Select Fund.

The Pune-based Kirloskar Family Office, the family office of former Reliance Capital CIS Madhusudan Kela and Abhinav Sinha, managing director of British International Investment, are among the backers of Artha’s new micro VC fund.

“...I met Anirudh eight years ago in Dublin and stayed in touch with him as he grew the Artha portfolio. We became increasingly comfortable with Anirudh during AVF’s (Artha Venture Fund’s) second close and decided to hit go this time,” said Chris Kolenaty, head of private investments at the Kirloskar Family Office.

Artha announced the final close of AVF, another micro VC fund investing in early-stage startups under the group, in June 2021 at over Rs 225 crore.  According to Artha Group, AVF  has made 27 investments so far, with a combined valuation of over Rs 3,600 crore.

Artha Group, as an umbrella entity, said it currently has investments in more than 100 startups across India, the United States, Israel, Africa, and the United Kingdom. OYO, Purplle, LeveragEdu, and Rapido, are among startups that have been backed by the Artha group.