Team Startupcity

• Artha India Ventures closes Rs 432-cr Artha Select Fund, overshooting target by 31%.
• Fund to back 12-14 growth-stage startups in spacetech, fintech, AI, and consumer goods.
• 80% capital from Indian family offices; first bet placed on spacetech startup Agnikul Cosmos.

Artha India Ventures has announced the final close of its latest vehicle, the Artha Select Fund (ASF), at Rs 432 crore overshooting its initial target of Rs 330 crore by 31 percent. The fund is designed to provide growth capital to select portfolio startups, plugging the critical funding gap in India’s 'missing middle' between Series A and C rounds.

ASF will back the top 15 percent of Artha’s 135 portfolio companies, writing Series B and C cheques averaging Rs 20 crore. Over the next four years, the fund plans to invest in 12–14 startups spanning spacetech, fintech infrastructure, premium consumer goods, and applied AI. Artha describes ASF as a 'capital bridge', aimed at enabling startups to scale without repeatedly returning to the market for fresh capital.

“For founders, it means they don’t have to run to market every time they want to raise. They already know there’s an investor on the board willing to put more capital”, said Anirudh A Damani, Managing Partner of Artha Select Fund. He noted that Artha’s long-standing relationships with founders often built over three to four years translate into stronger trust and lower diligence costs compared to traditional Series B/C investors.

The fund has attracted significant backing from Indian family offices and ultra-high-net-worth individuals, who anchor 80 percent of ASF’s capital, with the remaining 20 percent contributed by global LPs spanning Singapore, UAE, Mauritius, Hong Kong, Africa, and the USA. Artha itself has committed nearly 10 percent to the fund.

ASF’s successful close comes shortly after Speciale Invest raised Rs 600 crore for its third fund, signalling renewed LP appetite after a tough year for venture fundraising. “Fundraising was difficult for over a year due to the slowdown, but since March 2025, it has eased”, Damani said.

Also Read: Micro-Venture Capital Artha Venture raises INR 225 crore to close its Maiden Fund

Launched in 2018, Artha Venture Fund was among India’s earliest micro VC funds and today manages assets worth over Rs 1,200 crore, with 33 exits under its belt. Damani highlighted that the micro VC model Artha pioneered in 2017-18 has matured, with family offices recognising the potential of smaller funds with low operating costs to deliver strong returns.

Through its various funds, Artha has backed notable startups including OYO Rooms, Rapido, Purplle, and Leverage Edu. Under ASF, the firm has already evaluated six companies, approving only one spacetech startup Agnikul Cosmos with an investment commitment of Rs 20-40 crore.

“We’ve turned down five others after detailed scrutiny. We’re a winners’ fund, not a follow-on fund, so the bar is far higher”, Damani added.