Finvolve marks Rs 90 crore first close of Rs 250 crore fund to back defence, aerospace and deeptech startups

Finvolve, a Gurugram-based multi-stage venture capital firm, has announced the first close of its Rs 250 crore growth-stage fund at Rs 90 crore, as it looks to back growth and late-stage Indian startups across defence and aerospace, frontier and strategic technology, energy and consumer sectors.

The fund plans to invest in about 30 to 35 companies over the next three to four years. It will focus on businesses that have demonstrated product-market fit, growth potential and the ability to scale.

Finvolve has also retained a greenshoe option, allowing it to accept additional commitments beyond the initial close. The firm expects to complete the final close of the fund within six months.

“From a capital perspective, we see a compelling opportunity to participate in companies that have already crossed the early-risk phase and are now entering their next stage of value creation,” said Apoorva Vora, co-founder of Finvolve.

Vora said the first close would allow the firm to build a diversified portfolio across growth and late-stage opportunities while maintaining discipline around entry valuations, capital deployment and follow-on investments.

From early-stage startups to pre-IPO companies

Finvolve was incorporated in 2022 as a joint venture between startup accelerator India Accelerator and B2B financial services firm Finolutions.

The investment platform describes itself as sector- and stage-agnostic, with a strategy spanning companies at different points in their development, from early-stage startups to businesses approaching public markets.

Its latest fund, however, is specifically aimed at growth and late-stage companies.

Finvolve has four other active funds across its investment platform. Its previous Category II alternative investment fund, which focused on pre-IPO companies, has completed its investment cycle and is fully deployed.

Its broader investment platform includes an accelerator fund and a seed fund for early-stage companies, as well as growth-focused investment vehicles targeting more mature businesses.

For its growth-stage investments, Finvolve considers an IPO or an acquisition as potential exit routes. India Accelerator's Finvolve platform lists a deployment period of about 18 months and a three-year exit period for its growth fund.

The new fund will focus on sectors where Finvolve said it is seeing founders address increasingly large and complex opportunities.

“From defence and aerospace to frontier technology, energy and consumer, we are seeing founders tackle increasingly large and complex opportunities. This fund is designed to support those companies at the stage where the right capital and ecosystem can help them make that leap,” said Ashish Bhatia, co-founder of Finvolve.

Finvolve has made more than 45 startup investments and deployed over Rs 350 crore across its portfolio.

Its portfolio includes drone maker IG Defence, anti-drone defence technology startup Indrajaal, frontier AI research company Soket AI, satellite infrastructure startup Kepler Aerospace and electric vehicle company Matter EV.

According to India Accelerator, Finvolve has received capital commitments of Rs 500 crore.

With its latest fund, Finvolve is targeting companies that have moved beyond the earliest stages of business risk and are looking for capital to expand.

The firm plans to build the portfolio over the next three to four years and expects to complete the fund's Rs 250 crore final close within six months.