Peak XV, Elevation, Andreessen back India visa platform
Peak XV Partners, formerly Sequoia Capital India, and Elevation Capital have led a USD 12m Series A round for Indian visa platform Atlys with support from Andreessen Horowitz.
Local incubator South Park Commons also participated, as did US musical act The Chainsmokers and founders of US media service Pinterest. Mohak Nahta, the CEO and founder of Atlys, previously worked as an engineer at Pinterest.
It follows a USD 5m seed round in 2021 featuring Andreessen Horowitz, South Park, Chainsmokers, along with fellow US investors Endeavor Group and Long Journey Ventures. Atlys maintains bases in both India and the US.
The company’s core value proposition is to streamline the visa application process for Indians, reduce visa rejection rates, remove visa-related barriers, reduce customers’ visa fee burden, and establish a strong market position as the industry transitions to e-visas.
The platform is said to allow users to apply from anywhere in the world, with 99% getting their visas on time. It leverages partnerships with governments and more than 1m data points to predict when visas will be delivered, which is said to reduce rejection rates.
“Travel is a fast-growing category in India that is seeing strong tailwinds post-COVID,” Shraeyansh Thakur, a principal at Peak XV, said in a statement.
“Over 10m new passports are being issued in India every year, adding materially to the base of travel aspirants from India. Visa is a critical pain point for travellers and Atlys is building a next-gen platform to transform visa applications for travellers globally and reimagine international travel.”
Atlys sees visa protocols moving rapidly toward digitalisation, noting that more than 60% of countries have already adopted e-visas. As this trend unfolds, it aims to expand operations into financial services adjacencies such as credit for travel, remittance, and travel insurance.
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