Will Home-Grown Funds Be Able To Save The Day?

Venture capital (VC) and private equity (PE) funds have suddenly turned conservative and startups find their capital flow pipeline drying up. Will the brand new crop of investors be able to sustain the velocity of capital?

Rise Of Domestic Investors

In recent years there has been a steady increase in the domestic VCs and PE firms who are fuelling local capital into local startups thereby reducing dependence on overseas investors

"WE MUST CREATE A VIRTUOUS POSITIVE CYCLE"

Wealth creation can lead to its accumulation and circulation within an economy, and domestic capital becomes important in this specific opportunity as it can trigger a sustainable and longterm growth cycle, advises Infosys' Co-founder Kris Gopalakrishnan in a conversation with BW Businessworld's Editor-in-chief, Annurag Batra. Edited Excerpts:

"INDIA SHOULD SEE 300 NEW UNICORNS IN THE NEXT 8-10 YEARS"

Vikram Gupta, Founder, Ivy Cap Ventures Advisors is a seasoned investor with 25 years of experience in diverse business settings including private equity, business consulting, M&A, strategy and operations in healthcare, education as well as consumer goods. He set up India's first-ever venture capital fund for healthcare and life sciences, sponsored by Ajay Piramal in 2008. In a chat with BW Businessworld, he talks about fund deployment strategies, the tech ecosystem, India's journey to build 500 unicorns by 2030, among other things.

"WE ARE OFFERING OUR STARTUP ECOSYSTEM ON A PLATTER TO FOREIGN INVESTORS"

Of the 100+ unicorns in India, none are funded by Indian VCs, says the Founder of Venture Gurukool & Ankurit Capital, Mahendra Swarup, as he cites the lack of institutional support and experienced talent as the reasons why domestic capital has hit a barrier in India in this conversation with BW Businessworld's Noor Fathima Warsia

'INDIA PLACED MUCH BETTER THAN OTHERS TO RIDE OUT THE CURRENT CRISIS'

Anup Jain, Managing Partner, Orios Venture Partners, a venture capital fund focused on early stage technology startups such as Pharmeasy, GoMechanic, Battery Smart, Zupee, WeRize, Beato, Kenko and Karbon, speaks about the potential of Indian startups to go aglobal, surge in venture private equity investments post-pandemic, scaling up D2C companies, emerging trends in the D2C sector, among other things, in a conversation with BW Businessworld. Excerpts

"AGRITECH AND DEEP-TECH COMPANIES CONTINUE TO REMAIN OUR FOCUS"

Ritu Verma, Co-founder, Ankur Capital, in an interaction with BW Businessworld, talks about the art of creating products, bringing early-stage technology innovations to market, deploying investments across 14 companies from her firm's Fund-I, besides fintech, FDI influx and more. Excerpts:

PROLONGED PURPLE PATCH

Even the recent market correction is working in favour of VC firms like Blume Ventures as capital is pulling out of public markets and flowing into early-stage startups

THE GREAT CAPITAL SPLURGE

Sudhir Sethi, Founder & Chairman, Chiratae Ventures, a leading technology-focused venture capital firm that invests in early-stage companies in the Indian market, in an exclusive interaction with BW Businessworld sheds light on the current Indian investment environment, the workable strategies during 'funding winter', the impact of rupee capital as a game-changer for homegrown startups, and the growth plans for his organisation. Excerpts

BACKING THE AUDACIOUS ENTREPRENEUR

After nurturing icons like Flipkart, Myntra, FirstCry, Poilcybazaar and Lenskart in the first wave of India's startup revolution, veteran early-stage investor Chiratae Ventures is looking to replicate its success in e-commerce 2.0 as well

Movers and Shakers

Mahindra Logistics is getting ready to exploit the large growth opportunities in the third-party logistics business with clearcut strategies that are intended to double its revenues in the next four years

The New Age Of Workplace Culture

Businesses will need to cultivate a culture premium to attract, recruit and retain the best talent

“WE ARE MOVING TOWARDS FACIAL AUTHENTICATION”

India has, driven by the CoWIN platform, been able to dispense over 197 crore doses of Covid vaccines as on June 28, 2022. The CoWIN platform is a testament to India’s much admired digital push, and work in the digital public infrastructure (DPI) space. Judging by reports, and the assessment of experts, the digital economy could create value in excess of $1 trillion by 2025. National Health Authority (NHA) Chief Executive Officer Dr R.S. Sharma, discusses unlocking the value of the digital public infrastructure (DPI) in a conversation with Jyotsna Sharma of BW Businessworld

“NO NEWBORN OR CHILD SHOULD DIE FOR LACK OF TERTIARY OR QUATERNARY INTENSIVE CARE SERVICES”

Dr Dinesh Kumar Chirla, Director, Intensive Care Services, Rainbow Children’s Hospital talks about the importance of intensive care facilities at a children’s hospital. Excerpts of a conversation with BW Businessworld:

“HEALTHIER CHILDREN ARE THE FUTURE OF A NATION”

Rainbow Children’s Hospital was set up in Hyderabad on 14 November 1999. In 2006 it became the first children’s hospital with a perinatal sub-speciality. The obstetrics, foetal medicine and gynaecology departments were also set up then and have together made a huge impact on child care in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The hospital developed numerous support services to optimise outcomes for expectant mothers and newborn babies like pre-pregnancy counselling, childbirth education classes, etc. In a conversation with BW Businessworld, Dr Pranathi Reddy, Clinical Director, Obstetrics and Gynaecology, at BirthRight by Rainbow Hospitals, emphasises the importance of integration of obstetric care services with childcare. Excerpts:

‘I WANT KARNATAKA TO CONTRIBUTE $1.25 TRILLION TOWARDS THE INDIAN ECONOMY'

Bengaluru has emerged as the largest startup hub in India, climbing two spots this year and solidifying its position in the global top 10 hotspots. At the recent Davos Summit, the state government signed Rs 60K crore worth of MoUs spanning sectors like IT, renewable energy and manufacturing. Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai spoke with Annurag Batra, BW Businessworld’s Chairman and Editor-in-Chief about his vision for Karnataka and more else. Excerpts

Reimagining Bengaluru

With an eye on making Bengaluru the coolest destination for multinationals and investors, the Basavaraj Bommai government in Karnataka is going all out to spruce up the infrastructure in India’s Silicon Valley

Preventing Heart Disease

An estimated 80 % of cardiovascular diseases, including heart disease and stroke, are preventable

INDIA'S TOP LEGAL SCHOOLS

Celebrating the top 100 premier legal education institutes in India for their contribution in shaping the legal minds of the future By Ashima Ohri

CHILDREN NEED CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS

Rainbow Children’s Hospital is the largest chain of multi-speciality hospitals for children and perinatal services in India. Dr Ramesh Kancharla, Chairman and Managing Director, Rainbow Children’s Hospital, shares his experience in setting up the hospital chain and his vision for paediatrics in India. Excerpts:

A RAINBOW OF HOPE FOR CHILDREN

With nearly 26 million babies born in India every year, the need for topquality and effective paediatric care is increasingly becoming a necessity

Life In The Digital World

The pandemic highlighted the benefits of a robust globally. Indiq has made significant progress in the digital public infrastructure (DPI) space. An Omidyar Network India and Boston Consulting Group report estimates that by 2030, tën high potential National Open Digital Ecosystems (NODES) in sectors like health, agriculture, justice, etc, could collectively create new economic value of over $500 billion (more than Rs 35 lakh crore)

Electric Vehicle Anyone?

WITH ANNOUNCEMENTS of new electric vehicle (EV) cars and two-wheelers bombarding us every month, it would be difficult not to be swept away by the rhetoric.

The UPI Moment In India's Ecomm Market

With the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), the Indian government aims to make ecommerce more inclusive, bringing small businesses within its ambit. To get there though, its offerings need to be on a par with those of the existing market players.

A New Hatchback In The Town: Citroen C3

The hatchbacks are disappearing from the Indian market and the sales of SUVs have overtaken the segment, as the prices of the hatchback segment have increased multifold in the past three years. But the customers still demand a hatchback at an affordable price. Will the new Citroen C3 be able to deliver that?

OUR BIGGEST FOCUS IS TO GIVE SMALL BUSINESSES ACCESS TO LARGE MARKETS

The Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) aims to democratise ecommerce by bringing small businesses and unorganised retailers online and increase India's ecommerce penetration to 25 per cent. T. Koshy, CEO, ONDC in a conversation with Annurag Batra, Editor-inChief, BW Businessworld and Arjun Yadav shares the project's journey and the potential of this network in revamping India's digital commerce space. Excerpts:

GROWING THE ATMANIRBHAR PROPOSITION

Schauna Chauhan's brand of atmanirbharta focuses on the journey where leaders must take many more together to create new possibilities. The CEO of Parle Agro applies this in her everyday work, creating more self-reliant leaders along the way

Recharge Yourself with Some Zzzz

Just as our electronics need to be recharged, sleep recharges and resets the body, brain and gut for optimal functioning

I WANT TO MAKE INDIA A STRONG PLAYER IN THE MOTORSPORTS WORLD

To usher in a new era in the motorsporting domain in India, Akhilesh Reddy, Director MEIL and Chairman, RPPL (Racing Promotions Pvt. Ltd.) is opening up opportunities for aspiring Indian racing drivers to take up the sport more seriously by bringing F3 and F4 racing to India

Climate Jobs in Demand

ON AN UNUSUALLY sunny winter afternoon, just a few hours after we landed in Auckland last month, we took a stroll around the city's Central Business District.