V3 Ventures, an early-stage venture capital fund backed by international investment company Verlinvest, has launched operations in India and plans to invest up to INR 896.5 Cr (100 Mn euros) in new-age brands, technology, enablers, and platforms at seed and Series A stages across India, Europe, and the US. V3 Ventures has already invested in audio content platform Kuku FM and digital healthcare app Eka Care in India. The fund, led by entrepreneur and investor Arjun Vaidya in India, will focus on early-stage digital and consumer businesses.
The funding winter continues to impact the Indian startup ecosystem, with funding raised by Indian startups slumping 75% YoY in Q1 2023. Verlinvest is a Belgian investment holding company that focuses on investing in consumer brands, digital and technology-enabled businesses, and services companies. It has a global presence and invests across multiple geographies, including Europe, Asia, and the Americas. The company has invested in several well-known brands such as Oatly, Tony’s Chocolonely, BYJU’s, Sula Vineyards, and Purplle.com, among others, over the past 25 years. According to Inc42’s Indian Tech Startup Funding Report Q1 2023, the funding raised by Indian startups declined by 75% YoY in the first quarter of 2023.
This is believed to be a result of the funding winter that started last year due to global macroeconomic uncertainties, such as the Russia-Ukraine war and rising inflation, which have impacted the startup ecosystem in India. Arjun Vaidya is the founder of Dr. Vaidya’s, a direct-to-consumer (D2C) ayurvedic healthcare brand based in India. In 2021, he joined Verlinvest to co-found V3 Ventures, a venture capital fund that focuses on investing in early-stage digital and consumer businesses across new-age brands, technology enablers, and platforms at seed and Series A stages. Vaidya is based in Mumbai and leads investments for V3 Ventures in Asia and India.