Jungle Ventures, a leading venture capital firm, announced on Wednesday the launch of First Cheque, a pioneering investment program aimed at startups at their initial stages of development.
A Unique Mentorship Approach
Within this initiative, Jungle Ventures plans to integrate three startup founders from its existing and previous investment portfolios into the investment team. These include Ramakant Sharma from Livspace, Sayali Karanjkar from PaySense, and Cameron Priest from TradeGecko. Their role will be to impart valuable operating insights to help startups with product-market fit and early-stage team building.
Financial Commitment
The firm has pledged to invest a baseline amount of $2 million in each startup selected for the program. The investments will be evenly split: half in equity and the remaining as a no-cap convertible note. This hybrid financial structure aims to provide both stability and flexibility for startups in their formative years.
Funding Source and Scope
In an interview with VCCircle, Amit Anand, a partner at Jungle Ventures, revealed that the funding for First Cheque would come from Jungle Ventures’ most recent $600 million fund. He also mentioned that the participating founders would contribute as angel investors. Anand stressed that the initiative is sector-agnostic and plans to back startups across India and Southeast Asia. Investment amounts for future growth stages could range from $5 to $10 million per startup.
A Steady Trajectory
Jungle Ventures, co-founded by Anand and Anurag Srivastava, has been on an upward curve since its inception. Starting with a modest $10 million for its first fund in 2012, the firm raised $100 million in 2016 and $240 million in 2019. Its fourth fund, closed in May 2022, raked in an impressive $600 million, far exceeding its initial goal of $350 million.
A Diverse Portfolio
The venture capital firm’s Indian portfolio is diversified, featuring companies like Turtlemint in the insurtech sector, Leap in edtech, BetterPlace in blue-collar workforce management, CityMall in social commerce, and Atomberg in consumer appliances. Additionally, Jungle Ventures acquired HealthXCapital in August, enhancing its footprint in the healthcare sector across India and Southeast Asia.
