Chennai-headquartered Anicut Capital has secured an investment of ₹50 crore from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) for the Anicut Equity Fund. The investment comes through the Fund of Funds for Start-ups (FFS), launched under the Startup India Initiative by the Government of India. The strategic move is aimed at boosting the early growth-stage companies that are a part of Anicut’s Equity portfolio.
Anicut Equity Fund launched its Grand Anicut Fund 3 in June 2022 with a targeted corpus of ₹500 crore, with an additional ₹250 crore green shoe option. The investment firm has closed two-thirds of the fund and has received a commitment of ₹75 crore from Self Reliant India Fund (SRI).
Within the first year of operations, the fund has invested in six companies, including Earth Rhythm, Neemans, Wheelocity, The Ayurveda Experience, Blue Tokai Coffee and XYXX. With a focus on Consumer and Technology sectors, the fund aims at investing in 12-14 early growth-stage companies (Series A and B) across Anicut and non-Anicut portfolios over the next 18 to 24 months.
“At Anicut Capital, our aim is to enable every aspiring idea and business across the country. We see great potential in ventures building an ecosystem of breakthrough innovations that contribute to the holistic development of our communities. This commitment from SIDBI not only provides us with the capital to invest in innovative start-ups but also solidifies our commitment to adding value to the burgeoning Indian start-up industry,” said Dhruv Kapoor, Partner, Anicut Equity Fund.
“Anicut Equity Fund has exhibited a compelling approach to nurturing start-ups and growth-stage companies in India. Their Grand Anicut Fund 3 is in cohesion with SIDBI’s objectives of fostering innovation, driving economic growth, and creating employment opportunities in the country. This investment isn’t just a vote of confidence in Anicut, but a strategic alignment aimed at boosting India’s evolving entrepreneurial landscape,” said S.P. Singh, CGM Incharge, Venture Finance, SIDBI.
The Fund of Funds for Start-ups (FFS) is a ₹10,000-crore initiative launched under the Start-up India Initiative of the Government of India in January 2015. Managed by SIDBI, FFS contributes to the capital of SEBI-registered Alternative Investment Funds (AIF) instead of investing directly into start-ups. The ₹10,000-crore fund forms a part of the Union Budget Allocation aimed at stimulating the start-up ecosystem in India. This initiative has encouraged a lot of Venture Capitals to set up their funds, including those setting up for the first time, acting as anchor investor and giving them credibility to raise further funds, thus ensuring mobilisation of domestic capital. The FFS had been a game changer creating direct and indirect employment of tens of thousands in the start-ups of which 22% are women. The initiative has spread geographically to cover start-ups are in Tier II & Tier III cities.
“Receiving funds from SIDBI’s FFS is a testament to our meticulous investment strategies and the robust portfolio we are building,” said Ashvin Chadha, Founding Partner, Anicut Capital. SIDBI is an existing investor of Anicut Capital and has invested in both their debt funds. They invested ₹140 crore in Anicut’s second debt fund.
Anicut Capital had backed innovative high-growth businesses such as Mcaffeine, GIVA, Leumas, Hair Originals, Sugar, Bira, Epigamia, LendingKart, Milky Mist, Axiscades, Neemans among others, across the growth spectrum of seed, growth, and credit.
