Sequoia seeks up to $3.1b for China, India

The China team has set a target of $1.6-1.8 billion for its fifth growth fund, having raised $899.5 million in the last vintage, according to sources familiar with the situation. Sequoia China Venture Fund VII, meanwhile, will be roughly the same size as its predecessor at $525-550 million. There is no filing indicating how much was raised for Fund VI, but the GP was said to be targeting $500-550 million.

The new addition to the China funds line-up is a seed vehicle of $125-150 million. Much as the growth fund allows Sequoia to continue backing portfolio companies as they scale up, the seed vehicle means it can access attractive opportunities at an earlier stage. The firm is already an LP in various smaller venture funds as a means of generating information and deal flow.

The target for Sequoia's sixth India fund is $625-675 million, substantially smaller than Fund V, which closed at $920 million – including a GP commitment of $45 million – in early 2016. It would be larger than the $530 million the firm initially raised for its fourth vehicle in 2014, but that corpus was subsequently increased to $694.8 million and reportedly ended up at $850 million.

The Sequoia China franchise, which was established by Neil Shen in 2005, has pursued venture and growth strategies – each of which now has a dedicated team – for more than a decade. Of the 164 unicorns identified in a Chinese government report published last month, Sequoia is an investor in 35. They include Didi Chuxing, Meituan-Dianping, Ele.me, DJI, and Toutiao.

The China and India businesses have a limited remit to pursue deals beyond their core geographies. Both have made investments in Australia while the India team, which is led by Shailendra Singh, has become an active player in Southeast Asia. The India fund is also known for backing everything from early-stage to relatively mature start-ups. Ola, Zomato, Go-Jek, and Tokopedia all feature in the portfolio.

Last year, Sequoia India sold positions in about a dozen companies to Madison India Capital, which had backing from Lexington Partners. This was not a pro rata strip of an entire fund. Sequoia fully exited its stakes in some companies and partially exited others, with the investors having some choice over the assets involved.

Sequoia is also raising upwards of $6 billion for a global growth fund, with new investors reportedly being asked to commit at least $250 million. AVCJ understands that certain existing LPs from across the Sequoia family of funds will be given the opportunity to contribute smaller amounts.

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• Topics
• Greater China
• South Asia
• Fundraising
• Growth
• Venture
• Sequoia Capital
• China
• India
• seed