US-Based Alphatron Closes Maiden Fund At $30 Mn To Invest In Indian Startups

US-based venture capital (VC) firm Alphatron Capital (formerly SMK Ventures) said it closed its maiden fund at $30 Mn (INR 249 Cr).

In a statement, the firm said that the fund was oversubscribed by 20% against an initial target of $25 Mn (about INR 207 Cr).

Founded by Suresh Vaswani, Karan Negi, Sudhir Pai, and Vishwesh Pai, Alphatron pools money from US-based investors and then acts as a limited partner for India-focussed VCs and PEs investing in homegrown startups.

With the fund, Alphatron aims to provide its US investors access to a diversified pool of India’s tech companies while minimising entry barriers for them. 

The fund will primarily focus on startups hailing from SaaS, fintech, healthtech, AI/ML, digital content and D2C sectors. 

“The Indian economy, driven by technological advancements, presents tremendous growth opportunities for investors. We are excited to serve as a gateway for US-based investors to participate in India’s future over the next few decades,” said Alphatron’s founding partner Vaswani.

Alphatron said it conducts extensive due diligence into its target funds. The VC firm plans to keep an eye out for tech-led funds and co-investment opportunities.

Alphatron has so far invested in 11 funds, including Blume, 3one4 Capital, Chiratae Ventures, and Speciale Invest, and also made five SPV/co-investments. 

The announcement comes at a time when a host of VC and PE firms are raising capital in droves despite the ongoing funding winter.

Recently, VC firm Cedar Capital announced the first close of its INR 240 Cr FinTech Venture Capital Fund, raising capital in the range of INR 50-75 Cr.

Besides, Facebook cofounder Eduardo Saverin-led B Capital also announced the close of its ‘Opportunities Fund II’ at $750 Mn. It said that the majority of the fund will be deployed for follow-on investments in B Capital’s existing portfolio of “high-performing” companies in North America and Asia.

According to Inc42’s Startup Investor Landscape Report 2023, Indian VC firms raised more than $11 Bn last year and made investments worth $9.4 Bn in 2023.

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