Early-stage venture capital fund HAF (Hyderabad Angels Fund) on Monday officially launched its maiden venture capital fund of Rs 150 crore, a category 1 Alternative Investment Fund (AIF). The fund will have an investable corpus of Rs 100 crore with an additional greenshoe option of Rs 50 crore. The fund will deploy up to Rs 5 crore across 20 startups in pre-series A or series A funding stages with a commitment to follow-on investments.
“As serial entrepreneurs and angel investors, we are staunch believers in the transformative force of innovation. We are building HAF as a dynamic, collaboration-driven platform where founders not only secure financial backing but also tap into the collective wisdom of accomplished Limited Partners (LPs) who themselves are successful entrepreneurs,” said Sri Myneni and Kishore Ganji, Managing Partners, HAF.
HAF, in the past five years, has made 33 investments with an IRR (internal rate of return) of 26.5 per cent and 12 exits. IRR is the annualized compound rate of return likely from an investment over its holding period.
“As an active investor in numerous venture funds and startups, I am of the belief that fostering an active engagement platform between Limited Partners (LPs)/ investors and entrepreneurs is pivotal for creating successful businesses. HAF is constructed with this strategic approach. With direct guidance from many seasoned investors from a diverse array of industries. HAF Collaborative Limited Partners (CLPs) platform will become a dynamic force empowering and cultivating successful ventures,” said BVR Mohan Reddy, Founder & Executive Chairman, Cyient and a mentor at HAF.
Importantly, tech startup funding in 2023 had declined across multiple metrics as investors grew more cautious about spending and growth without promising the bottom line and concerning valuations.
A full-year data from startup data platform Tracxn showed a 67 per cent decline in funding, 59 per cent drop in funding rounds, 63 per cent drop in Series A+ rounds, 52 per cent decline in first-time funded companies, 68 per cent decline in new additions to soonicorn club, 91 per cent drop in new unicorns, 32 per cent drop in acquisitions and 5 per cent decline in initial public offerings (IPOs).