The fund will collect up to Rs 200 crore from global private equity firms and a group of local wealthy individuals or family offices.
Name Merci’s Opportunities Fund, and established as a Category 1 Alternative Investment Fund (aif), it has already raised around Rs 50 crore from a host of investors, including Bahram Vakil, cofounder of AZB Partners, Aditya Birla Group business head Dev Bhattacharya and several other corporate executives from renowned companies.
The fund is in the process of raising another Rs 150-200 crore. The final figure has not yet been decided.
The USP of the fund is that it provides individuals and family offices with an opportunity to invest with venture capital (VC) in such rounds.
Joint Managing Director Sumir Verma said, “The fund can be positioned as an angel investor fund and is not a discretionary setup, which is unique among startup funds.” Merisis Consultant. “After the pandemic we have seen a digital boom, a segment that offers a lot of opportunities. We just want to offer that funding solutions.”
Investors will have the flexibility to choose where to put their money based on the structure of the deal.
The proceeds will be deployed to Series A or B startups. When a startup establishes financial credentials, such as consistent revenue or other performance indicators, it may go for Series A funding.
Similarly, B Series funding can be availed when the startup is ready for the next level of development, coming out of the growth phase. This level of companies is in a better position than the A series ones in terms of financial parameters.
“This gives investors a strong risk mitigation as the risk of not being able to raise capital has been addressed,” said Fazal Ahad, joint managing director, Merisys Advisors.
Earlier this week, Falguni Nair-controlled Nykaa made a blockbuster entry in the stock market, with investors witnessing a 78% rise in shares on the day of listing.
Earlier, Zomato had got the ball rolling amid investor enthusiasm.
Those have collectively paved the way for more startup fundraising and stock market listings. This, in turn, prompted yield-hungry global and local investors to bet on startup stories where India is in a good position.