Venture capital fund 100X.VC is looking to partner with Indian corporates as part of its corporate venture capital (CVC) programme, announced on Tuesday, to give them a ready pipeline of investible startups by leveraging the portfolio of 100X.VC and hence, tapping into startups for ideas, innovation and talent etc. The fund, according to its research survey, claimed that “top 100 corporations in India have kept aside anywhere between 10 to 100 Crores of Capital to invest into startups.” Launched by one of India’s most prolific angel investors Sanjay Mehta, among the early investors in OYO, 100X.VC is looking to back 100 startups in one year beginning December this year using iSAFE note — India Simple Agreement for Future Equity note where investors make a cash investment in exchange for a convertible instrument.
“Every quarter we have planned 20-30 investments. The first batch will be unveiled on December 7. CVCs can do a follow on investments into these startups. We expect by next year-end there will be at least 20-30 startups where CVCs will invest out of the 100 startups that 100X.VC will back,” Mehta told Financial Express Online. The fund would back 100 startups each year with an investment ranging from Rs 25 lakh (in startups having developed the product), to Rs 50 lakh (in startups that product as well as some users), and Rs 1 crore (in startups that have revenue as well.), according to Mehta.
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Usually, large enterprises set up their in-house incubators or accelerators or venture capital fund to do so and caters to startups in the respective domains and hence, are generally not sector agnostic. Some of the prominent companies having their own fund or incubation wing include Reliance, Microsoft, Google, Target, Qualcomm, Flipkart, Intel, Amity University, Oracle, Maruti Suzuki etc.
The CVC programme “primarily aims to directly or indirectly increase the sales and profits of the Corporations by striking deals with startups that use new technologies, entering new markets, identifying acquisition targets, and accessing new resources,” the fund said. The follow on investment by CVCs in 20-30 startups will be upwards of Rs 200 crore once we have funded these companies, according to Mehta. Globally, more than $60.8 billion was invested in over 1,065 deals in 2018 by corporate venture funds, according to 100X.VC.