Artha Group Launches Syndicate Investment Artha Continuum Fund Exclusively for Family Offices and UHNIs

• ACF is an exclusive syndicate launched for family offices and UHNIs to participate In bridge rounds of growth-stage startups
• Unlike typical VC funds, ACF gives investors the freedom to choose the startups they want to invest in
• A minimum investment of Rs 10 crore from quality LPs investing through a single vehicle will provide family offices and founders the perfect platform to engage through highly coveted bridge rounds alongside premier VC funds
• ACF will invest in 8 – 10 startups annually
• Artha India Ventures with its proven track record and India focus will lead the due diligence and negotiations on behalf of its elite investors.

Artha Group, which has Rs 1000 crore AUM, announces the launch of Artha Continuum Fund (ACF), a groundbreaking syndicate fund tailor-made for family offices and Ultra High Net Worth Individuals (UHNIs). Designed as the gateway to bridge rounds for startups transitioning to growth-stage ventures, ACF presents elite investors with privileged access to high-potential investment rounds.

Highlights of ACF:

• Exclusivity: A syndicate crafted just for family offices and UHNIs, India’s first.
• Opportunity: Direct access to bridge rounds of emerging growth-stage ventures
• Commitment: A minimum investment of ₹10 crores, signifying the gravity of each deal.
• Pipeline: ACF's maiden deal is set to get announced this quarter, aiming for 8-10 robust deals annually.

Through ACF, investors can now tap into previously out-of-reach opportunities due to the capital-intensive nature of such rounds. The fund will strategically co-invest alongside premier VC funds, offering investors a seamless entry into the growth stage VC ecosystem. This blend empowers investors with the diligence of venture capital and the cost advantages of direct investment.

Anirudh A. Damani, Director of Artha India Ventures

Anirudh A. Damani, Director of Artha India Ventures, says, "ACF arose from listening to our discerning investors. They yearned for a competent entity to oversee rigorous due diligence, sophisticated negotiations, and post-investment management while crafting their direct investment narratives."

ACF addresses a key challenge for many family offices and UHNIs: the depth of due diligence and negotiation power. Leveraging its vast resources and seasoned team, ACF emerges as the optimal platform for those seeking elevated returns from private investments but wary of the risks associated with early-stage startups. Notably, ACF isn't a blind pool, granting investors the autonomy to select and allocate funds each deal.

Sandesha Jaitapkar, COO, Artha Group, says, "ACF is more than just a fund. It's a movement to democratize elite investments in tech startups. We bridge the gap, allowing UHNIs to be actively involved, benefiting from the collective wisdom of seasoned VCs and superangels.”

With a strategic alignment with Artha India Ventures, ACF has garnered in-principle commitments from leading LPs. The fund remains committed to category-leading companies showing significant traction with clear profitability horizons. At its core, ACF's strategy addresses tangible human problems, optimizing unit economics, fortifying competitive moats, and leveraging technology as a potent enabler.

Proven Track Record in Syndication:

Before acquiring its license, Artha Group honed its syndication skills through strategic partnerships. It executed a notable ₹18 crore ($2.7m) syndicate with LeverageEdu, a prominent $1.9m syndication in the no-code platform Laminar, and a remarkable ₹5.5 crores investment in the spacetech pioneer, GalaxEye. These ventures stand as testaments to the group's proficiency and foresight in identifying and nurturing high-potential startups.

About Artha India Ventures:

Founded in 2012, Artha India Ventures ('AIV') has firmly established itself as a formidable player in the investment landscape. As the General Partner to flagship funds like the Artha Venture Fund and Artha Select Fund, AIV influences and shapes their investment blueprints. Simultaneously, its role as a Limited Partner in various global funds underscores its expansive investment reach. With a diversified portfolio that comprises 80+ startups across India, the USA, Israel, and Africa, AIV's investments include market influencers like OYO, Purplle, LeverageEdu, Exotel, Karza, Tala, IconBuild, Caja Robotics, and Badili.

About Artha Group:

Artha Group is the embodiment of diversified and influential investment. Beyond its identity as a family office, the group proudly champions the Artha Venture Fund, India's pioneering early-stage microVC fund, and the acclaimed Artha Select Fund, recently spotlighted in Bain & Company's / IVCA's 2023 Report on the Indian Venture Capital landscape.

The group's investment philosophy gets epitomized by its commitment to startups that promise and deliver innovation and transformation. Its vast portfolio, which extends to 100+ startups worldwide, showcases illustrious names such as Everest Fleet, Agnikul, LenDenClub, KarmaLife, and InstaAstro.

KarmaLife Raises ₹44 Cr in Pre-Series A-extension from Krishna Bhupal’s family office, Artha Venture Fund and others

• Valuation jumps 5x
• KarmaLife is a credit solutions provider for gig workers
• Funds raised to be used for scaling and expanding into new geographies and launching more products

KarmaLife, an earnings-linked financial solutions provider for the gig and blue-collared workforce and already the largest Early Wage Access (EWA) platform in India, has raised ₹44 crores in an extension to its Pre-Series funding round led by Krishna Bhupal’s family office and existing investor, Artha Venture Fund, amongst others.

The financing round saw participation from other existing investors, including Net Graph Investments, Singularity Ventures, LogX Venture Partners, Balesh Sharma, Amit Jain, Vikram Kailas, and Shaji Kumar Devakar.
Founded by Rohit Rathi, Naveen Budda, and Badal Malick in March 2020 with a combined 25+ years of business experience, KarmaLife operates in a business-to-business-to-consumer (B2B2C) model and has partnered with 50+ organizations, which includes Flipkart, Elastic run, Uber, Porter, Delhivery, and others, to give their employees an option to access their pay-out before payday.

Rohit Rathi

Rohit Rathi, Co-Founder & CEO – KarmaLife, says, “The Company plans to use the fresh capital for scaling, expanding into different geographies, launching more products, and spreading awareness about the product. We welcome this funding round, which reaffirms our investors’ alignment with KarmaLife’s mission. Together, we aim to drive financial inclusion and offer alternatives to predatory lending. Our unwavering goal is to transform the financial lives of millions of blue-collar workers.” 
The Company has impacted the lives of 2.70 lakh workers to date. It offers personalized, subscription-based credit products, such as Earned Wage Access and dynamic Line-of-Credit, based on a proprietary real-time credit scoring system called ‘KarmaScore.’ KarmaLife currently serves over 1,00,000+ blue-collar workers through its platform, continually striving to expand its reach and impact.
“We invest in people and entrepreneurs who have the vision, purpose, and team, who have the ability to create great teams and execute. This is the secret sauce to creating any great company. Our portfolio spans geographies (Silicon Valley, Singapore, India, etc.) and mission-critical businesses such as fintech, quant investing, wealth management, and healthcare. KarmaLife is creating a long-term business that is underserved not only in India but in markets globally. We share the business' growth plans as a portfolio investment, and more importantly, the impact of the business connects a few hundred million Blue collar and gig entrepreneurs into a network-based approach to transparently access credit which is sustainable and affordable,” says Krishna Bhupal, Chairman of his family office.
Earned Wage Access (‘EWA’) gives individuals access to a portion of their earned but unpaid salary any time before their payday. Freeing up employees and employers from the traditional pay cycle, EWA helps disrupt predatory lending models and incentivizes employees to stay longer with an organization. Within six months of partnering with KarmaLife, companies are seeing a 37% increase in retention, enabling them to drive more productivity.

Anirudh A Damani

Anirudh A Damani, Managing Partner – Artha Venture Fund, says, “We're thrilled to extend our support for KarmaLife. Their success is a testament to our conviction that lending and lending infrastructure are fundamental to India's economic future. The KarmaLife team’s commitment to empowering the blue-collar and gig workforce resonates deeply with our vision of fostering an inclusive financial landscape. To say we're eager to fuel their ongoing growth and impact would be an

The World Bank’s Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (‘CGAP’) had partnered with KarmaLife to publish research on financial inclusion for gig workers and run pilots to refine KarmaScore for larger ticket/longer tenure loan products in 2022. The Company was also recently recognized as the winner under ‘The Financial Inclusion’ Category at NASSCOM India Fintech Awards 2023; it was one of the 90 leading FinTechs evaluated by NASSCOM for the award.

Artha Venture Fund (AVF) is India's first early-stage microVC firm with a corpus of ₹225 crores. Since its inception in late 2018, AVF has primarily funded and supported startups that operate as enablers and entities focused on solving the challenges of Indian consumers and businesses. The current fund allocates thematic investment for B2B, B2C/D2C, and D2C enablers.

Led by Anirudh A Damani, a 2nd-generation investor, the firm has a network of limited partners, co-investors, founders, and family offices that traverse the globe. AVF's portfolio includes AgniKul, LenDenClub, Everest Fleet, Daalchini, Elev8 India Sportz, and more.
For more information, please visit-Artha Venture Fund
About Artha Group:
Artha Group, the umbrella entity of AVF, has investments in 100+ startups across India, the US, Israel, Africa, and the UK. OYO, Purplle, LeverageEdu, Tala, IconBuild, Rapido, Coutloot, Chai Break, Karza Technologies, and Mobilewalla are some leading startups in its global portfolio. Artha Group recently announced the launch of its ₹450-crore winners-only microVC fund – Artha Select Fund ('ASF').

Artha Group Launches Winners-only microVC Fund – Artha Select Fund; ₹100+ Cr Raised from Current LPs in 3 Weeks

• ₹450 crores fund size (₹330 crores + ₹120 crores greenshoe)
• Will invest in growth rounds of Artha Venture Fund and Artha India Ventures portfolio startups
• The average investment size would be ₹20 crores per investment in Series B and ₹20 crores follow-on in Series C
• The first term sheet is signed
• The Fund will announce the first close shortly
• Mumbai-based Artha Group announced the launch of its ₹450 crores winners-only microVC fund – Artha Select Fund (’ASF’).

The Pune-based Kirloskar Family Office, the family office of former Reliance Capital CIS Madhusudan Kela, Abhinav Sinha (MD – British International Investment), Narendra Karnavat of CA firm Karnavat and Co., Jashvant Raval of JCR & Co, Mumbai-based listed firm SAT Industries, Varun Bansal of Jayashree Polymers, Rajiv Lakhotia of Shree Karni Fabcom, and several other investors have (so far) backed this opportunities fund. Abhinav Sinha will also be joining the investment committee at ASF; he was already an IC member at AVF.

ASF will back category-winning startups from Artha’s portfolio in their follow-on rounds. The Fund will commit up to ₹20 crores in the Series B round and an additional ₹20 crores in the Series C round in startups where Artha is already an investor. ASF will back 12-14 startups through this vehicle.

ASF raised its first ₹100 crores in less than 3 weeks, as current LPs enthusiastically chose to double down on the winners of Artha Venture Fund (‘AVF’) – India’s first early-stage microVC Fund. The established winners of AVF include LenDenClub, Agnikul, Everest Fleet, HobSpace, InstaAstro, KarmaLife, etc.

Artha announced the final close of AVF in June 2021 at over ₹225 crores, exceeding its target corpus of ₹200 crores. The Fund has made 27 investments so far, with a combined valuation of ₹3,600+ crores. AVF has provided spectacular portfolio returns to investors with a 3.61x MoIC (Multiple on Invested Capital) and 120%+ IRR as the earliest investor in these startups.

AVF’s portfolio startup Daalchini raised its Series A round led by Unicorn India Ventures. AVF had led Daalchini’s seed and Pre-Series A rounds. Besides, AVF recently announced its investment into circular-economy startup Nirmalaya.

Bhavin Patel, CEO, and Founder of LenDenClub, India’s largest P2P-lending platform, said, “Artha has been a true partner for LenDenClub, investing in us when we were disbursing just 8-10 loans per month. In those early days, with their support and understanding of working with other startups, Dipesh and I could establish solid KPIs for the business and ensure that our business decisions were based on data.”

In December 2021, LenDenClub raised a $10m Series A from Ohm Enterprises (Amal Parikh’s family office), Tuscan Ventures, Som Ventures LLP, QED Innovation Labs, Angel List, ace Indian cricket Hardik Pandya, and Shajikumar Devakar (IIFL Wealth).

“Artha led our seed round and doubled down on that investment in the Pre-Series A. In addition, their $1.8m investment in the Series A round increased the investor’s confidence, aiding us in closing the round quickly,” Patel added.

LenDenClub has grown 20x since it closed its Series A round, disbursing more than ₹1000 crores through its platform in August 2022 – the first Indian P2P platform to achieve that milestone.

Artha will announce its first close along with its first investment shortly.

Chris Kolenaty, Head of Private Investments at the Kirloskar Family Office, says, “Over the last decade, the Kirloskar family has built an understanding of assessing private companies, opportunities, and entrepreneurs through venture investing. I met Anirudh 8 years ago in Dublin and stayed in touch with him as he grew the Artha portfolio. We became increasingly comfortable with Anirudh during AVF’s second close and decided to hit go this time. We see him becoming one of India’s top private investors and are excited to collaborate with him!”

Anirudh A. Damani – Managing Partner, Artha Select Fund, says, “We are ecstatic with the fantastic response to our winner’s Fund. We see early-growth rounds as an amazing investment opportunity to back founders at a critical inflection point in their venture journey. With ASF, we provide our founders with the added firepower to chase sound business metrics like revenues, positive unit economics, and profitability!”

About Artha Select Fund

Artha Select Fund (ASF) is a growth stage microVC fund with a target size of ₹450 crores launched by the Artha Group of Companies. ASF is a unique winners-only strategy that will invest in the top-performing startups from the Group’s portfolio of 100+ direct startup investments focussing on Series B & C rounds. 

Led by Anirudh A Damani, a second-generation investor, the firm has a network of limited partners, co-investors, founders, and family offices that traverse the globe.
Artha Group, the umbrella entity of ASF, has investments in 100+ startups across India, the US, Israel, Africa, and the UK. OYO, Purplle, LeveragEdu, Tala, IconBuild, Rapido, Coutloot, Chai Break, Karza Technologies, and Mobilewalla are some leading startups in its global portfolio.