US-based fintech-focussed investor Ribbit Capital, which counts Indian unicorn Policybazaar among its portfolio companies, has floated its sixth global fund.
The new fund – Ribbit Capital VI LP – aims to raise $420 million, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It did not reveal the likely timeline for closing the fund.
The target corpus for the new fund is the same as that of its fifth global fund, which it floated in late 2018, according to an SEC filing at the time.
Ribbit Capital, which was founded in 2012 by Meyer “Micky” Malka, started with its inaugural fund of $100 million, according to its LinkedIn profile.
It is backed by a variety of institutional investors including Spanish banking group Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentina SA and Silicon Valley Bank as well as numerous high-net-worth individuals.
Ribbit Capital joins a number of US-based venture capital firms that invest in India to have announced new funds or fundraising milestones.
Earlier this month, VCCircle reported that Falcon Edge Capital, a New York-based hedge fund and venture stage investor that has invested in cab-hailing firm Ola and online classifieds firm Quikr, marked the final close of its first India-dedicated fund.
Tiger Global Management also closed a $3.75 billion global private investment vehicle earlier this month. India will be among the three key focus geographies for the new vehicle – Tiger Global Private Investment Partners XII – along with China and the US.
Last month, Accel raised $550 million for its new India fund. This came three years after its fifth fund, which had raised $450 million.
Sequoia Capital is planning to raise a record $1.25 billion for its new fund for India, The Times of India reported earlier this month.
Ribbit Capital’s India play
The new fund is good news for fintech startups in India as the US-based firm has been an active investor in the country at early to middle stages.
The fintech-focused investor's first investment in India was in the online insurance selling platform Policybazaar in 2014, according to VCCEdge, the research arm of Mosaic Digital. Policybazaar entered the unicorn club in 2018 following a $200-million funding round led by SoftBank Vision Fund.
Between 2014 and 2018, Ribbit went on to invest in personal finance management app MoneyView, consumer lending startup ZestMoney, digital lending platform Capital Float and Cred, founded by FreeCharge founder Kunal Shah.
Last year, the investor made at least three new investments in online payment gateway startup Razorpay, digital payments firm BharatPe and online investment platform Groww.
Its most recent investment was in EpiFi Technologies Pvt. Ltd, which operates a neo-banking startup.
Ribbit Capital is tapping into India's vibrant fintech space where companies seek to address the growing need for last-mile delivery of financial services and provide value-added services to consumers across all socio-economic segments.
