Elev8 Venture Partners Announces First Close Of Fund I At $67 Mn

Bengaluru-based growth venture capital firm Elev8 Venture Partners has announced the first close of Elev8-Capital Fund 1 at $67 Mn. The first close of the fund witnessed participation from family offices and high net worth individuals (HNIs) from India, the Middle East, and Asia.

The VC firm plans to invest in 12-14 startups, with valuations ranging from $100 Mn to $500 Mn. It will be participating in Series B and Series C funding rounds (typically in the range of $10 Mn to $15 Mn) of startups in sectors such as consumer tech, enterprise software, fintech, and healthtech.

Elev8 Venture Partners began its operations in early 2023 after receiving AIF category II license from SEBI late last year. Founded by a former partner at Kae Capital, Navin Honagudi, Elev8, claims to be the country’s first Pro-Rata fund, anchored by KB Investment, South Korea’s largest Financial conglomerate, and Venture Catalysts (VCats) are institutional cofounders to the fund. This would be the first time in India that a Global Institution has anchored a maiden fund.

The VC firm has already signed a term sheet with an enterprise SaaS tech startup in the space. However, it didn’t disclose the name of the startup.

Beyond investments, Elev8 will also assist its portfolio companies in expanding their global outreach and strengthening their presence in SEA markets, where KB has already established a strong network through partnerships and investments. 

On closing of the fund, Navin Honagudi, managing partner, Elev8 Venture Partners, said, “Given overwhelming response we have received from our LP’s we were able to announce the first close in 3 months, much earlier than expected. Way forward is to be aggressive in the current environment and invest in one company a quarter or more. We feel the existing vintage will uncover the finest companies in the coming decade.”

Despite the ongoing funding winter which began last year due to the Russia-Ukraine war, this year, VC, angel and PE investors have announced 40 funds worth more than $3.6 Bn to support Indian startups at various stages. 

According to Inc42 analysis, 65% (or 26 funds) of the total funds announced so far in 2023 focus on early and growth stage startups. 

While about $3.6 Bn worth of capital is meant specifically for India, there are funds such as B Capital and Nexus, which consider India as one of their investment markets (we have not included them in $3.6 Bn), which have closed large funds.

Some of the major fund closes this year are Licious-backer 3one4 Capital closing Fund IV at $200 Mn, Arkam Ventures launched its second fund with $180 Mn corpus, early stage VC firm Chiratae announced the final close of its Growth Fund I at INR 1,001 Cr.