Micro venture capital firm Rockstud Capital, which counts companies such as ice cream brand NOTO and agritech startup BigHaat as a part of its portfolio, on Thursday said it has hit the first close of its second fund at Rs 68 crore ($8.2 million).
The Mumbai-based alternative investment firm floated the ‘Rockstud Capital Investment Fund – II' last year and is targetting to raise Rs 300 crore ($36 million) for the investment vehicle.
The fund has been raised largely through domestic investors, the firm said.
VCCircle reported last year Rockstud changed its investment strategy for its second outing, moving away from the hybrid investment strategy in its first fund, where it invested both in startups and publicly listed companies.
The latest fund, a category-I AIF, will operate more like an angel network and will help companies to fund their bridge rounds. Rockstud’s team will evaluate startups and then give its LPs the option to invest where they want on a deal-by-deal basis.
The fund hit the market nearly two years after it missed its target for the maiden vehicle by a wide margin.
Rockstud had, in mid-2018, aimed to raise $10 million (Rs 70 crore then) for its debut fund and then increased the target to $25 million in 2019. However, its fundraising plans derailed after the Covid-19 pandemic and it managed to eventually raise only Rs 35 crore by mid-2021.
Through the second fund, Rockstud will invest in five key areas: digitalisation, sustainability, financial inclusion, health and safety, and consumption.
“The Fund recognises the potential of the country's youth and aims to create an ecosystem that nurtures their innovative ideas and transforms them into scalable businesses” it said in a statement.
These investments will be at the pre-Series A stage, with Rockstud cutting cheques in the range of $0.5-1 million. It will further look to top up further in well-performing portfolio companies.
Abhishek Agarwal, founder and managing partner told VCCircle last year that the firm will invest in about 25 early-stage startups.
