Representative AI Image (Credit: Lexica)
MUMBAI – US-based venture capitalist (VC) General Catalyst acquired local investment company Venture Highway in order to take advantage of the growing India market and expand its bets on the region. Investments worth $500 million to $1 billion are planned for the Indian market over the next few years.
“India’s economic and political agency in the world is increasing ….with India’s agency growing and shifting geo-political backdrop, the need for a very strong and deep Indo US collaboration becomes imperative today,” said the Silicon Valley-based firm that has backed Indian startups such as Cred and Spinny.
Venture Highway, co-founded in 2014 by Neeraj arora, the former chief business officer at WhatsApp, has been a pioneer in backing unicorns such as Meesho and Moglix. The firm will lead General Catalyst initiatives in India, which has the world’s third largest startup ecosystem after the US and China. The firm stated that “General Catalyst & Venture Highway aim to combine deep India localisation with global networks and capital to reimagine the venture investing to suit India’s unique opportunities and problems.”
In recent months, VCs and PEs (private equity) have raised funds. A significant portion of these funds has been allocated to the India market. The large consumer base in India and the rising disposable incomes provide startups with opportunities to innovate and build. Startup funding, which had been tepid due to a global tech downturn, is now picking up speed with several late-stage deals.
Hemant Taneja, the CEO and managing director of General Catalyst, said in an interview with TOI, last year, that the country’s technology stack will help a lot more Indian businesses enter and grow in areas such as agriculture, climate, health care and semiconductors within the next five to 10 years. “A lot of the work done around Aadhar and UPI sets us up for innovation.” Taneja said that India has a tremendous opportunity in the next 15-years.