Providing Monetary & Experiential Capital to New-Age Entrepreneurs Inflection Point Ventures evaluates startups based on fundamentals and technological demand, prioritising companies with solid foundations and sustainable growth prospects.
By Sujata Sangwan •
This story appears in the July 2023 issue of Entrepreneur India. Subscribe »
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Inflection Point Ventures firmly agrees with Warren Buffet's adage about investing: "Be greedy when others are fearful and be fearful when others are greedy." "We follow this principle by capitalizing on opportunities during times of uncertainty. Even at the start of the Covid pandemic, when other firms temporarily halted investments, we continued to actively seek out great opportunities. Following our contrarian approach, we opportunistically invested in a number of startups with exceptional founders at that time. Notable examples include Videoverse, Otipy, Blusmart, and Samosa Party, among others," said Co-founder Ankur Mittal.
IPV believes in the importance of staying vigilant and maintaining a long-term perspective. Even a few quarters ago, the early-stage angel investing platform had advised its startups to carefully review expenses, optimize cash flow, communicate with stakeholders, and explore alternative funding sources.
"Companies which can showcase their unique value proposition, a strong founding team, sustainable business models, and highlight disruptive technologies would continue to increase their chances of securing funding ahead of others," added Mittal.
However, the funding environment may continue to be difficult for a few more quarters before an epicycle takes effect. At the same time, it's a great time to be an investor, as valuations have moderated post the frenzy of 2021-22, highlighted Mittal.
IPV's investing philosophy remains unchanged, focusing on creating value rather than driving valuation. The firm evaluates startups based on fundamentals and technological demand, prioritising companies with solid foundations and sustainable growth prospects.
"We acknowledge the recalibration of valuations at certain funding stages but continue to assess startups based on market potential, business strength, and founder capabilities," stated Mittal.
Sector-agnostic IPV continues to seek out and invest in companies led by exceptional founders available at reasonable valuations. Deeptech/SaaS, healthcare and biotechnology, sustainability and clean energy, fintech, and ecommerce and marketplaces are some of its target sectors. IPV actively engages with its portfolio's founders to assess risks and provide a support network to them when burn/runway may become an issue.
"We've set up unique initiatives like a 'Lets Grow Startup' program for deep engagement with 4-5 identified experts from various domains who work closely with our portfolio companies advising on strategy and have a regular check on burn and runway," highlighted Mittal.
Apart from the cash conservation and management exercise on a case-to-case basis, IPV does assist companies in connecting to right partners (like other VCs, RBF companies) for intermediate financing arrangements.
Stats:
No of Startups Invested in: 164 (since inception)
No of Exists (since inception): partial exits 21 and full exits 11
Partial Exits/Exits in FY23: 13
Focus Sectors: Agritech, Cleantech, Content/Social, D2C, Deeptech, Ecommerce, Edutech, Fintech, Gaming, Grocerytech, Healthtech, HRtech, Logistics, Mobility, Propertytech, Retailtech, Saas/B2B, Services, Sports & Fitness, Technology Saas.
Ticket Size: INR 3.3 Cr
