Bessemer closes $350 million India-only fund to boost play

Bessemer Venture Partners (BVP) closed its second dedicated India fund at $350 million (about Rs 3,051 crore), aiming to invest in startups across artificial intelligence (AI), software-as-a-service (SaaS), fintech, digital health, consumer brands, and cybersecurity domains.

This follows the Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm’s first India-focused fund of $220 million raised in 2021, which backed startups such as Boldfit, MoveInSync, Pepper Content, Shopdeck, Vetic, and Zopper.

“The fund was substantially oversubscribed, but we capped it at $350 million. Also, the limited partner base of the fund includes global universities, foundations, sovereign wealth funds, and a bunch of family offices,” said Vishal Gupta, partner and managing director at BVP’s Bengaluru office.


Launched last October, the fund plans to invest between $5 million and $40 million in early-stage startups and continue supporting them through later growth stages.

BVP, which started its Indian operations in 2006, has invested in more than 80 startups in the country so far including BigBasket, PharmEasy, Urban Company, and Livspace. Its portfolio has seen nine companies go public including Swiggy, Indian Energy Exchange, and Bharat Matrimony.

“We would continue to invest across the roadmaps of SaaS, AI, and fintech companies which are building software for the financial system, digital health, consumer brands and cyber security. This is where we are going to deploy most of the capital,” said Gupta.

On AI investments, BVP partner Anant Vidur Puri said the firm is exploring opportunities across various layers of AI, including foundational models, infrastructure, applications, and AI-led services.

“As a firm, we believe all four are exciting areas or companies in India. However, top two areas from these four would be companies building verticalised AI applications, and companies building AI-enabled services for different industries,” said Puri.

Globally, Bessemer’s portfolio includes companies like Pinterest, Shopify, Twilio, LinkedIn, DocuSign, Fiverr, and Toast. The firm manages more than $18 billion in assets globally.

BVP’s fund closure comes amid a wave of new VC fund closures. On January 5, ET reported that Accel India, an early investor in Flipkart and Swiggy, closed its eighth fund with $650 million in commitments. Similarly, Stellaris Venture Partners closed its third India-dedicated fund at $300 million recently.