Alternative investment firm Anicut Capital announced a Rs 50 crore investment from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) for its Anicut Equity Fund. SIDBI has invested through the Rs 10,000 crore Fund of Funds for Startups (FFS) established in 2016 under the Startup India initiative by the government. SIDBI is the operating agency of the fund while the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry is the monitoring agency.

The fund instead of directly investing in startups, provides capital to SEBI-registered alternative investment funds (AIFs), known as daughter funds, who deploy money into startups through equity and equity-linked instruments. Importantly, AIFs must invest at least two times of the amount committed under the fund in startups. “We are excited to welcome SIDBI as an investor through the FFS initiative. It further energizes our mission to identify and invest in game-changing businesses and empower the next generation of Indian entrepreneurs. At Anicut Capital, our aim is to enable every aspiring idea and business across the country. We see great potential in ventures building an ecosystem of breakthrough innovations that contribute to the holistic development of our communities,” said Dhruv Kapoor, Partner, Anicut Equity Fund.

The fund had launched its Rs 500 crore Grand Anicut Fund 3 in June last year with an additional Rs 250 crore green shoe option. The firm said it has successfully closed two-thirds of the fund and has also received a commitment of Rs 75 crore from the government’s Self Reliant India Fund (SRI). “Within the first year of operations, the fund has already invested in six companies including Earth Rhythm, Neemans, Wheelocity, The Ayurveda Experience, Blue Tokai Coffee and XYXX. With a focus on Consumer and Technology sectors, the fund aims to invest in 12-14 early growth-stage companies (Series A and B) across Anicut and non-Anicut portfolios over the next 18-24 months,” Anicut said.

SRI is a Rs 50,000 crore fund by the MSME Ministry managed by the public lender State Bank of India’s (SBI) private equity arm SBICAP Ventures (SVL). According to the data shared by Bhanu Pratap Singh Verma, Minister of State in the MSME Ministry in a written reply to a question in the Lok Sabha in July this year, the total equity infusion under the SRI Fund has reached Rs 4,885 crore including the Government of India contribution of Rs 529.40 crore since the inception of the fund in May 2020. Anicut’s portfolio companies include Wow! Momo, Bira, Sugar cosmetics, Wingreens, Sharechat, Mcaffeine, Agnikul, Impresario, etc. It offers debt and equity capital to early and growth-stage startups and currently manages three debt funds, one angel fund and one early growth equity fund with cumulative assets under management (AUM) of Rs 1,600 crore.