Sehaj Singh

🚀 Swiggy Set to Make Waves with ₹11,300 Crore IPO: Key Details and Market Implications 🌐 Swiggy, India's food delivery giant, is set to go public with an IPO launching on November 6, 2024, aiming to raise around ₹11,327 crore (~$1.35B). Shares will be priced at ₹371-₹390 each (around $4.64), with trading expected to start on November 13, 2024. IPO Highlights: Price Range: ₹371-₹390 per share Funds Allocation: Expanding logistics and quick commerce operations This IPO is launching amidst rising tech-driven competition in India’s market. By securing capital, Swiggy plans to advance its quick commerce capabilities, aiming to gain a strategic edge over competitors like Zomato. Market Impact: Swiggy’s IPO offers a unique investment opportunity with strong growth potential, balancing between established dominance in food delivery and quick commerce expansion. Investor Insight: With a grey market premium around ₹25, sentiment is optimistic. As Swiggy steps into the public sphere, it's poised to redefine India's fast-paced delivery ecosystem. #IPO #SwiggyIPO #Investment https://lnkd.in/eyHRRPXh

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Big Exits, Bigger Returns: 2024 is leading the charge for Indian VC’s appetite for exits. For years, large exits with substantial returns have been a sore subject for Indian VCs, but 2024 is shaping up to change the narrative. With an increasing number of IPOs, M&As, and secondary sales, the winds are shifting in favour of exponential returns. After a low phase in 2022 and 2023, we’re seeing startup IPOs bouncing back and profitability trends sparking a domino effect across the ecosystem. Which begs the question: When and how can investors expect exponential returns on their portfolios? Take secondary deals, for instance. As Blume’s Karthik Reddy notes, “A 1% holding can yield $750,000 to $5M in cash returns, a sweet spot for micro-VCs but often unattractive for larger funds.” Yet, large funds writing early-stage to growth-stage checks have delivered astronomical returns—sometimes in the hundreds or thousands of multiples. Such as these game-changing examples: ✦ Tiger Global: 340X return on Freshworks ✦ Info Edge: 1,000X return on Zomato’s IPO ✦ Kunal Bahl & Rohit Bansal: 101X return on Mamaearth’s IPO These are just a few examples of how VC investing can lead to a goldmine. However, the old adage of “the more, the merrier” portfolio is evolving. Investors are becoming more receptive towards companies with strong fundamentals over sheer scale. As Fireside Ventures’ Vinay Singh insightfully pointed out: “For many international LPs, India is grouped with China under the Asia pool of capital. But with China facing its own set of challenges, investors are finding comfort in Indian startups trending towards profitability.” At the heart of these pivotal discussions is #MoneyX 2024, where we’ll dive deeper into these themes shaping the future of startup investments in India. If you haven’t secured your spot yet, now’s the time. Reserve your invite today:  https://4-2.co/3X6gQ2I Vaibhav Vardhan Utkarsh Agarwal #VentureCapital #Startups #IPO

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Here is what I learned about start-ups. It's all about a) people b) people c) people I started 6 companies, mentored founders, raised funding, exited to a market leader and read countless pitch decks. Of course, you need a product-market fit, cash flow, marketing, etc etc... But, most of this is only guessing. Things never work according to plan. Market change, unexpected things happen. The only thing that does not change is you and your team. Great teams adopt and change regardless of challenges. And that, my friend, makes a difference between success and failure. PS Are you a start-up founder? What is your biggest challenge? --- I’ve been there and done that! Pitching, funding, launching, scaling, waving goodbye – I’ve seen it all. DM me for a FREE 1:1 chat to help you do the same.

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This is Must-Read for all founders Navigating the pre-seed funding landscape is painful, especially in an ecosystem like India. I recently read "The Pre-Seed Playbook" by Eximius Ventures and WeWork Labs, and it's packed with insights that every early-stage founder needs! Key takeaways: 1. The crucial distinction between pre-seed and seed funding. 2. How to value your start at pre-seed stage. 3. The importance of having a strong, well-rounded team at the pre-seed stage. 4. How to avoid common mistakes that derail startups in the early stages. 5. Tips on finding the right investors and networking strategies that work. I highly recommend this guide to pre-seed founders or aspiring founders. Thank you, Eximius Ventures and WeWork Labs at WeWork India, for putting together such an insightful resource. #startups #entrepreneurship #preseed #funding #startupjourney #founders #innovation

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Announcing: Antler Fastrack to Residency - MUMBAI Edition (for founders in Mumbai / Pune / Ahmedabad / Surat) 2 weeks back we announced the first version of Fastrack to Residency through a warm intro to stay true to our promise on delivering faster to the most exceptional founders in Bangalore! We had an overwhelming response of 250+ warm referrals from other VCs, operators, serial founders and were introduced to a vibrant bunch of founders building across bath fittings, offline senior care clubs to CBDCs powered international payments. Of this, we met with 22 founders (and have 30+ we are speaking to virtually given limitation of slots) and offered the residency to 5 teams and individuals within 48 hours! Seeing such a promising response from the ecosystem, we are now coming to Mumbai and hope to see an even bigger outcome! If you are an exceptional founder (individual or team) that’s just starting up, Nitin Sharma & I will spend a full day in Bombay on the 27th of August to talk to you! The only twist - you need to reach us through someone who knows you - and knows us too! Why are we doing this - we announced last month that we are investing $500k in 20 companies (amounting to $10Mn). This is our endeavor to deliver faster and bigger on this promise! What we promise - is a decision into the Residency within 24 hours of us meeting you. Here’s how it will work - (1) Find someone in our networks (cue: some of them would have shared this post on their LinkedIn / Twitter) or would have engaged with us in the past. (2) Show us you are super resourceful :) Ask them to email us / tweet to us / message us on LI / Whatsapp us - any of the Antler team members that they know (there’s 18 of us!) - to give a warm intro to you. Convince them to write a good line or two :)  (3) All shortlisted individuals and teams will get a direct slot with Antler India on Aug 27th meet us IRL in Mumbai. (If you are not shortlisted post the above process, you will hear from us by Aug 24th) (4) You will get a decision to get into the Antler India Residency by Aug 28th Please note that the last date for being referred to this is 21st of August. Do refer great folks our way! Next on the list - NCR in September!

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Looking forward to boosting India’s vibrant #venturecapital ecosystem as part of Indian Venture and Alternate Capital Association (IVCA)’s VC Council for 2024–26! The Indian VC ecosystem has proliferated in the last decade. It’s a golden era for Indian #entrepreneurship, and the more we foster domestic capital pools, the farther #India will be able to advance in the global economic arena.

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At BizPodRoohi we are building - Quality and valuable podcast content focused on the Indian and US startups and VC ecosystem Focusing on Indian and US as that's where the majority of the listeners are from - Piloting various content experiments like: 1. In person podcasts - In September will reach out and start planning with Sahil Lavingia for a live in person podcast + mixer Dependant on whether he comes to Singapore or not- in November 2. Build in Public monthly content 3. Deep Dive episodes on companies 4. Roundtable podcasts 5. This Month in VC 6. Early Employees Segment 7. Newsletter 8. Email Updates 1) One thing I have realized is trying to build a weekly business podcast for BuildSpace is that it is hard - Guests are getting inundated with requests You have to try a combination of ways to get a guest to agree to come on 2) Another thing I have learned from hosting an event for my podcast and in person podcasts - Nothing can beat the energy of in person podcast episodes 3) Final one podcasting helps you improve your luck surface area - you get to know more people in the ecosystem as a byproduct of sharing conversations with them

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Frugality & Startups. Is being frugal an important part of an organization at the early stage? That's what we believed when we started, because we knew that resources were limited and we needed to prolong our runway. Subsequently, after a few years, we also learned there will be too many mistakes on the way and the only way to survive is that mistakes can't be costly. My growing up helped a lot in making this change, during graduation my nickname was “Pishukkan pattar”( miser Brahmin in Malayalam, for context I am not a Brahmin). Though that wasn't a nice name then, after starting up I have worn that as a badge of honor and lived every day. We came from a corporate life of flying whenever required and designated car for 7 plus years. Still, when we started up, Puru and I have always taken the train between Mumbai - and Delhi for the initial 4 years and to date only take a cab in between Pune - Mumbai when more than one person is traveling. Bla bla is my default mode of travel and I use those trips to convert co-passengers as True Elements consumers.  Coming from a middle-class household, the biggest benefit one has is we aren't scared about ZERO. We started there and if need be going back there won't be an issue. This doesn't mean failures don't scare us it does but still we are ready to take risks. When the hunger to excel and resilience is coupled with being frugal, then nothing will knock you down. You will have bruises and stitches but you won't be out of the game. Frugal is a subjective word, even Ambanis find this word relevant. The only difference between a commoner and them would be the number of zeros they are comfortable putting on the desk. So don't judge yourself with my frugality and it has to be defined by you and you only. Earlier i used to judge a fresher buying an iphone 15, though i still pass a comment but i dont judge :). In a startup biggest cause of conflict between old-timers and new members is this, who is more frugal? When frugality becomes a culture and every new member is judged on that, it becomes difficult for people joining from big corporations. But freedom for these new members is pivotal so as to check the tensile strength of frugality.  All organization needs to be frugal throughout their journey. The degree of frugality varies depending on their stage and that needs to be challenged and calibrated now and then. Ps: When we raised our first angel, we bought Google Chromebooks because that doesn't need a MS OS & Office and used to come at 17K. The image here is of my desk with my refurbished HP 14-inch with i5 and OS bought for 19k. Yes we are still frugal :)

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[Call for social impact founders] Investing is about creating shared value for investors but impact investing is about creating shared value for both, society and the investors. Antler India’s partnership with Suzuki is our small contribution towards a better tomorrow. Next Bharat Ventures has launched a Residency program for impact entrepreneurs, starting this October. It is a great opportunity to receive valuable mentorship, access to a close-knit community, and patient capital of atleast INR 1Cr for your startup. Eligibility criteria: Impact • The startup should be increasing the income of the rural population of India or informal workers in urban areas Sectors • The startup should be operating in one of the following sectors: Agriculture, Supply Chain, Financial Inclusion, Rural Mobility Business • The startup should be registered as a for-profit company • The startup should have atleast INR 50 Lakh in revenue Deadline to apply is 18th August. Link in the comments. Tag if you know any founders building in impact/share! Vipul Nath Jindal, Sachin Richa Ahuja, Akari A.

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Hey Everyone! We are creating a resource specifically designed to help founders in India navigate the tricky waters of pre-seed funding. And, we need your insights to make it happen! We've put together a quick survey (should take about 10-15 minutes) to gather insights about pre-seed funding experiences. Your responses will directly shape the content of this playbook, making it a super valuable resource for the Indian startup community. https://lnkd.in/g_JDNNUF Requesting everyone to submit the form as soon as possible! Your insights are crucial in helping us create a guide that will benefit the entire startup ecosystem in India and re-define the experience of raising the first check. Thanks for your time, and let's make this playbook awesome! 🚀 Pankhudi Kedia Arvind Radhakrishnan, CFA Aniket Jagtap Shenjit Basu Mohini Kumar

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Trying something new… I will be shortly recording an episode on “Finding your first design partners in the US as a US-India startup” with an accomplished serial founder in the SaaS/enterprise space. What questions should I ask? Thoughts please 🙏🏽 PS: more specific, the better!

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💪 Let's Build Strong Start Up Ecosystem We are happy to host Premananth (Pitch Deck Expert) from Star insights for a meet in Tirunelveli. Session will be on Helping StartUp founders to raise funds faster ✅ Essence of Investment ✅ Arts and roots of investments ✅ Branding entomology He will be available on 29th April 2024 @ Brand Mindz Tirunelveli Office. #brand #investments #growth #startups

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Hi everyone,     We ( Rajeev Suri and me) are delighted to share and make you meet BlueGreen Ventures that’s been launched today.     ( Some who we shared this name with, fondly call it BGV. Don’t mind at all )      Now, you may ask :    🔹 Who is BlueGreen ?     Not your typical “play-it-safe” character – #BGV is someone who’s all about thinking big, pushing boundaries, and creating space where others might see limits.      #BGV is also someone who doesn’t believe in competing for the same slice of the pie.     Instead, it's about creating new opportunities, building trust, and doing things the right way    With a mindset rooted in transparency, fairness, and discipline, everyone at BlueGreen sets out to make a real impact on the world around them  🔹 What’s BlueGreen passionate about?      #BGV is passionate about India. And, committed to investing in & supporting bold founders who are ready to reshape industries and drive meaningful innovation to help India become a developed economy    🔹 Who’s backing BlueGreen?     Some pretty powerful people for starters ! Global CEOs, CXOs of Fortune 500 Companies , and successful Founders from India who believe in the same values of integrity, impact, and innovation that BlueGreen stands for. Institutions - domestic and foreign too, will join as the journey progresses      🔹Where is BlueGreen focused?     #BGV likes to come in at Early-stage, doing Seed to Series A investments in India-based companies with a focus on :     🌱 Climate & Sustainability   💸 Fintech for India’s underserved   🛒 B2C businesses reflecting post-Covid mindset shifts on consumption and lifestyles e.g. new travel experiences, shifts in thinking about careers & skilling, health & nutrition, and more    #BGV will also keep an eye out for Growth-stage companies looking to go IPO in 4-5 years. But hey, it needs to know these founders and companies really well.       🔹 What’s the #BGV style of investing ?  At #Bluegreen, everyone is hands-on, collaborative, and always ready to roll up their sleeves. When BlueGreen invests, they don’t just write a check – they become an active partner, helping founders navigate the challenges of growth and scaling, all while staying true to their vision. After all, its an operator-led firm    🔹 Any past track record of BlueGreen’s Partners’ on investments they led ?  Yes, of course  Near 1x capital returned in under 6 years   60% IRR from an investments vintage between 2018-2021   A 5x+  multiple on these for those who like this metric  1 IPO ( ixigo ) in our Honors list, and more in the offing      If you’ve enjoyed reading about BlueGreen Ventures and would like to explore the #BGV way whether as a founder or someone looking at growing their career in VC, do drop by on www.bluegreen.vc or drop us a line.      We will be delighted to speak to you.      Welcome to our next chapter. Welcome to BlueGreen Ventures We look forward to building it with you ! #Entrepreneurship #VC

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Supporting & Hooting for Shruti Agarwal and folks for launching the first dedicated community to solve for all things exports and working on the mission to solve for India's trade deficit by empowering our SMEs with an integrated ecosystem What is XportCircle:  XportCircle is a non-profit in India aiding businesses to grow exports by offering a supportive ecosystem. The community has been formed by couple of industry experts with a single mission to make this one of the largest exports community in the country. Why Us:  XportCircle empowers Indian businesses for global success by bridging knowledge gaps, offering support, and fostering collaboration. This drives significant export growth, benefiting the economy and all sectors involved. Vision: XportCircle aims to position India as a global export leader by focusing on several key initiatives. We share vital insights on international trade, provide training to enhance export capabilities, foster collaboration among industry professionals, advocate for export-friendly policies, and support businesses in accessing new markets through research and connections. Through these efforts, we empower Indian businesses to thrive in the global marketplace. Join Now : https://lnkd.in/dZ2FFenu

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As a part of fellowship we are committed to give our fellows the opportunity to experience of what is it like working with a VC/Syndicate. Excited to share that The VC Fellows will be getting an opportunity to scout deals for India Accelerator this development comes as a part of collaboration between The VC Fellowship by HIREVC and India Accelerator. Thanks to Mahek Lahoti for supporting this and Rajan Luthra for making it possible. Incase you want to apply for the second cohort, please check the comments section. #venturecapitalist #venturecapital #funding #dealsourcing

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I have seen this play out a lot - Investors evaluating D2C brands take feedback from friends and family which might not be the right thing to do because of 2 reasons -- 1. Negative bias kicks in. When you ask someone close how this product is, they aren’t thinking, “What’s good?” Instead their immediate thought is, “What’s bad?” This is a natural tendency—people tend to focus on what could be wrong instead of highlighting the positives. 2. The Target audience isn’t the same. Your friends and family probably aren’t the target customers of the startup. Real feedback comes from people who actually use the product and experience the problem it solves. Here is what you should do instead: ask the founder who their target customers are and talk to them for real feedback. Feedback from friends and family can create bias, as they’re not the real customers.

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