What Cross-Border Venture Capital Investments into India Represent? Could this herald the advent of customized smart solutions for India?
By Rahul R
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At a time when technology exposure to startups in India is on the rise and with even the investors of these startups having turned smart with respect to actually mentoring ventures to contribute to societal causes, cross-border venture capital investment has also been witnessing significant traction. This is substantiated when we consider the sheer number of global venture capital (VC) firms which are now setting-up shop in India and facilitating information exchange.
Recently, there was Ganesh Ventures founded by Jessica Wong – a known face in the angel investment scene in India; which even pumped-in USD 30 Million in startups in India; including USD 10 Million in financial solutions provider IndiaLends.
Now, following a similar trajectory, FidelisWorld led a venture round in Wildcraft that is into consumer apparel, footwear, and outdoor gear.
Decoding Fundraising
Normally, for venture rounds, the general criteria for equity investors is business scalability and real-world use-cases achieved through effective technology-driven models. Wildcraft's latest venture round saw participation from as many as 3 investors; the company also has Sequoia Capital and PremjiInvest amongst its investor database; they have led during the earlier rounds.
Even Flipkart had pumped-in venture capital at Wildcraft recently.
"Wildcraft's products are targeted towards solving for the unique outdoor needs, by addressing the region's unique conditions around weather, terrain and distances. We are excited to be a part of this growth story and look forward to working with the Wildcraft team," stated Rajeev Kalambi who is Principal at FidelisWorld who has now joined the board at Wildcraft, in a media statement.
Now, the key takeaway for venture round fundraising is scalability of business whilst addressing an actual pain-point.
As far as the latest venture round is concerned, the funds raised by Wildcraft is still undisclosed at this juncture. However, the company could potentially use the latest capital to further international operations through leveraging FidelisWorld global networks whilst enhancing products for the Indian consumers.
Cross-border investments
World-class facilities and products are usually the by-products of cross-border investments and technology exposure. In this regard, it remains to be seen if the Indian masses could get to enjoy smart outdoor gear from Wildcraft, especially at a time when the Monsoons have set in throughout the country.
The recent Ganesh Venture investments in IndiaLends assumes significance as there is a plaguing need to make financial services easily accessible to the needy.
In related developments, healthcare startup SigTuple raised USD 19 Million from the likes of Accel and IDG. This investment takes SigTuple's overall equity fundraising to USD 25 Million.
