GHV to launch RS 350 cr fund for tech startups

With an objective of providing a springboard to the technology-focused startups in India, Green House Ventures (GHV), a Gurgaon-based Accelerator, has partnered with Makoto Takano, ex-president of PIMCO Japan, and World Innovation Labs (WiL), a Japan and Silicon Valley-based VC fund.

The partnership is soon going to launch a ‘350-crore fund for early stage consumer technology focused Indian startups’. The investment will start early next year and the funding will be in the range of Series A round.

Vikram Upadhyaya, the chief mentor at GHV Accelerator, said, “We will be sector agnostic but the focus will be around consumer technology. The focus on technology is because it builds a scalable business model. We will invest anywhere between $2.5 million to $5 million, which is around Rs 17- 33 crore, in each startup.”

As an investor, Upadhyaya’s portfolio counts the like of security startup Druva and accommodation aggregator Stayzilla among others.

Takano, who has now joined the board of GHV Accelerator, will bring in his expertise in fundraising and ecosystem building to the partnership. He is also the founder of MT Partners KK, which assists 14 companies including atomixmedia, where Takano

“India is a bullish economy and I am excited to be a part of success stories from India,” said Takano. He serves as the CEO and the editor-in-chief of Forbes Japan.

WiL, which invests $5-$30 million in early and growth-stage technology and internet startups, will bring its global venture capital expertise to the startups.

“India today looks like what China was 10 years back and growth here will be much stronger in the next few years.We would like to fund a couple of companies from GHV if there is a strong connection to Silicon Valley or Japan,” said Gen Isayama, CEO of WiL.