3one4 closes India venture, seed funds

The VC fund – known as Continuum I – had a target of INR3.5 billion and reached a first close of INR1.5 billion in February. LPs include Emory Investment Management, which manages the Emory University endowment, and Japanese technology conglomerate Sojitz Corporation. Infina, an investment arm of the Kotak family, is one of several Indian institutions and family offices participating.

Emory Investment Management, which oversees a $7 billion portfolio of assets on behalf of the university, Emory Healthcare and The Carter Center, is described as a significant investor in Continuum I. This represents one of its largest allocations to an Indian venture capital firm. Sojitz is making its first commitment in the local VC space. The company has also opened an office in Bengaluru and wants to explore partnerships with 3one4 portfolio companies as a means of deepening its India exposure.

The venture capital firm raised INR1 billion for its debut fund in 2016 and closed its second vehicle at INR2.5 billion early last year. Continuum I is positioned as an annex or top-up fund with a remit to participate in growth-stage rounds for companies backed through the first two vehicles. It will primarily target Series B rounds, writing checks of $3-5 million. LPs will have opportunities to co-invest in some of these growth rounds.

The seed fund, Rising I, has comfortably exceeded its target of INR250 million. The objective is to become the first investor in start-ups that might still be conceptual in nature and support expansion. Equity commitments will be in the INR5-35 million range. Rising I will also anchor deals alongside local angel investor groups.

"We firmly believe that the Indian startup ecosystem has achieved critical mass and now supports the development of market-leading businesses at scale. These companies combine deep domain expertise, sustainable competitive advantages, and uncompromising customer experiences to build a gravity well around themselves. Our deep involvement model has helped our companies optimize for defensibility and growth in revenue and scale," Siddarth Pai, a managing partner at 3one4, said in a statement.

The firm was established in 2016 by Pranav and Siddarth Pai (pictured), who are sons of T.V. Mohandas Pai, formerly a senior executive at Infosys. 3one4 now has approximately INR8 billion in assets under management and a portfolio of more than 50 companies, among them Licious, Betterplace, DarwinBox, Faircent, Bugworks, Pocket Aces, YourStory, and Tracxn.

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• Topics
• South Asia
• Fundraising
• Venture
• Technology
• India
• 3one4 Capital
• TMT