Anicut Capital Marks Final Close Of Its Maiden Pre-IPO Equity Fund At INR 300 Cr

Alternative financing firm (AIF) Anicut Capital has marked the final close of its maiden pre-IPO equity fund at INR 300 Cr.

With this investment vehicle, named as Equity Continuum fund, the firm will be backing 5-6 late stage companies on their way to an initial public offering (IPO) in the coming two to three years. This translates to cheque sizes of INR 50-60 Cr per company. 

It also said that these companies have had “long-standing relationships” with Anicut Capital, spanning over five years. 

The investor has backed startups like Sugar Cosmetics, Lendingkart, Giva, Sharechat, Wow! Momo and Bira among others. 

The intended target corpus for the fund was INR 200 Cr and the company had to exercise a green shoe option to net the additional INR 100 Cr. The firm claims that the final close comes within eight weeks and saw an investment of INR 60 Cr from HDFC AMC. 

“The swift closure within eight weeks, bolstered by a substantial INR 60 crore investment from HDFC AMC, underscores strong investor confidence. Anicut Capital’s closure of the Anicut Equity Continuum Fund marks a significant milestone in our mission to support high-potential companies on their path to IPO,” Anicut Capital’s cofounder and managing partner Ashvin Chaddha said. 

This isn’t the first instance of association between the firm and HDFC AMC. Through its Fund of Fund Select AIF FOF-I, HDFC AMC made a commitment of over INR 30 Cr to AIF back in October 2023. The AIF deployed the capital through its equity fund, Grand Anicut Fund 3.

Founded in 2015, Anicut Capital manages six diverse funds, including three debt funds and three equity funds, and claims to have INR 3,000 Cr in assets under its management. 

The AIF’s increasing interest in late stage investments comes at a time when new age tech startups are making a beeline towards the bourses. In 2024, startups like Go Digit,  TBO Tek, ixigo, Trust Fintech, Awfis and TAC Infosec have already made their public market debuts. Now, Ola Electric, Swiggy, BlackBuck, Firstcry and Unicommerce, are in the queue to go public.

With the close of its late stage fund, the investment firm is now looking to raise its third credit fund with a target corpus of INR 1,200- 1,500 Cr. It claims to have deployed INR 400 Cr from the fund across seven deals till now and plans on investing the entire corpus by the end of the fiscal year 2024-25 (FY25). 

Besides, the Chennai based firm, which also has presence in Delhi, Chennai, and Bengaluru, has also expanded to India’s first  International Financial Services Centre Gujarat International Finance Tec (GIFT) City. Since starting operations in GIFT City in November 2022, Anicut Capital has launched three active fund structures: Cat II, Cat III, and an Angel structure, which are set to begin investment activities soon, marking a new phase in its growth strategy

“Expanding on private credit and early-stage innovation, we’ve launched three active fund structures in GIFT City and demonstrated strong investment execution of $100 Mn deployed in the first half of 2024. Additionally, Anicut Capital is proud to announce the opening of its new office premises, further enhancing our commitment to expanding our operational footprint and fostering innovation in Chennai and across South India,” Anicut Capital’s cofounder and managing partner IAS Balamurugan said.