The first venture capital fund for Indian entrepreneurs has been formed by AUM Ventures.
With the help of this fund, AUM hopes to relocate its Indian portfolio companies to the UAE and assist them in establishing an office there. Additionally, it will make investments in emerging markets that attract investors’ attention.
AUM links startups in India with international markets. It works with startup founders to support the launch of their regional operations and also helps them secure follow-on money from international investors to support market expansion.
The Abu Dhabi Global Market oversees AUM (ADGM). The early-stage venture capital business supports consumer-oriented and tech-enabled Indian startups.
“AUM Ventures seeks to connect Indian innovators with strategic resources and best practises from around the world while fostering partnerships with foreign investors interested in India’s burgeoning digital economy. According to Chetan Mehta, founder partner of AUM Ventures, “Our investing strategy is meant to maximise the scale of success and deliver larger risk-adjusted returns for our clients.
AUM has invested in 11 firms, including Skyroot Aerospace, Smiles.ai, GlobalFair, Swish, LemmeBe, NewMe, Esports XO, Fenix, Myways.ai, Krayonnz, and FirstSense, under the direction of founding partner Chetan Mehta.
Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Abu Dhabi each have an office for AUM. It asserts that a large number of the companies in its portfolio have gotten follow-on funding from institutional investors.
More than 60 businesses from India, Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and the United States are represented in the family office of Chetan Mehta. He has supported over 30 firms as an angel investor.
“We are thrilled to work with AUM Ventures as they develop a successful platform to link Indian creators with the flourishing and reliable ecosystem at ADGM. With AUM Ventures as a dependable partner, this agreement will also give regional investors and family offices access to the vibrant and developing Indian venture capital market, according to Arvind Ramamurthy, chief of markets at ADGM.
The VC firm estimates that India will grow at a rate of more than 6% and that it will now overtake the UK as the fifth largest economy in the world. By 2030, India’s GDP is projected to overtake China as the third-largest. By 2030, its GDP is anticipated to reach $8 trillion and its GDP per capita to double.
The fund was established at a time when Indian startups are experiencing a slowdown in the economy. In addition, the lack of finance, unfavourable market sentiment, and market inflation are some more micro issues limiting startup growth.
Despite this, numerous venture capital funds have lately been established to support early-stage and growth-stage firms. A few recent VC funds include the $500 million fund from SphitiCap, the $350 million fund from Avataar Venture Partners, the INR 450 crore micro VC fund from Artha Group, and the $225 million fund from Fireside Ventures.