Healthcare-focused startup incubator, HealthStart has decided to set up a new sector-focused angel network after being approached by many companies who have already crossed the phase of accelerator programme and are in need of further funding.
HealthStart is India’s first accelerator program dedicated to supporting startups in healthcare industry through funding, mentorship and other requisite support.
Pradeep K Jaisingh, founder and chairman of HealthStart said, “The network will comprise 100 professionals from domains like pharmaceutical, diagnostics, hospitals, devices as well as from the private equity and venture capital space. We are looking at people from India as well as from the US, Europe and Singapore.”
HealthStart is expecting the angel network to become operational by coming June and will be focusing on areas that are within healthcare, which would include technology, mobile applications, chronic disease management, preventive healthcare and ecommerce.
It has stated that, around 8-10 investments will be made in a year. As for the ticket size of the investments, it would be about INR 1- 2 Cr. with an exit period of around two years.
HealthStart began as an accelerator for healthcare startups in 2013. So far, it has incubated 5 companies and are planning to incubate another 10-12 startups this year. Its main focus will be on health-tech domain with a ticket size of INR 20 lakh each. HealthStart’s existing portfolio companies are Obino, Gympic, CarewayHealth, Elemencia Wellness and Healthians.
“We had our first accelerator programme last year with India School of Business, Hyderabad. We are going to do this again this year and are looking at India as well as global partners,” said JaiSingh.
Pradeep K Jaisingh, an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad, was the managing director and CEO of International Oncology – a global cancer care and research company. Vivek Jetley, Raj Airey, Anil Gupta, Suhail Chander and Jayant Goel are the other founding partners of this venture.
In this space, with focus to bridge supply-demand gap for healthcare services in India, few healthcare groups like Manipal Hospitals, Narayana Health, Pfizer and investor Unitus Seed Fund had also started a programme known as StartHealth in order to provide up to INR 10 Cr. in grants to early stage health tech startups working towards affordable technology-driven healthcare products and services for low-income masses.
