Endiya Fund II has received an investment of ₹50 crore from the Nippon India Digital Innovation AIF Fund.

The partnership with Nippon’s Digital Innovation Fund will provide Endiya portfolio companies with financial and strategic support, resulting in increased access to growth opportunities and sustainable scalability.

Nippon India Digital Innovation AIF (NIDIA), a Fund of Funds, is an example of collaboration targeted under the India-Japan Digital Partnership with the encouragement and support of the prime ministers of both countries. It is managed by Nippon Life India AIF Management Limited (NIAIF), a 100 per cent subsidiary of Nippon Life India Asset Management Limited (NAM India). Nippon Life Insurance (NLI) owns 75 per cent of NAM India.

The FoF plans to invest in 15-20 venture capital funds in India. It looks to invest across multiple horizontals like robotics & automation, internet of things (IoT), artificial intelligence, machine learning and consumer technology and verticals like manufacturing, EVs, automobiles, financial services, healthcare, education, e-commerce, retail and pharma.

Endiya Partners is a seed and early-stage venture capital firm investing in IP-led Indian product start-ups that are globally relevant. Endiya’s current portfolio includes Darwinbox, Steradian Semiconductors, Kissht, SigTuple, and Myelin Foundry.

Limited partners in the Fund include financial institutions, corporates, and family offices across India, Europe, and the US. Endiya Fund II will seek to invest in 16- 20 start-ups, with an initial cheque size of $500,000 to $1 million in Seed/Pre-series Rounds and a planned investment of up to $5 million per company.

Founded in 2016 by Sateesh Andra, cardiologist-turned-investor Ramesh Byrapaneni and Abhishek Srivastava, Endiya added Abhiram Katta to its top deck in 2018 and most recently expanded its Investments team by hiring Dipesh Chawla and Lakshmi Kancharla.

Bridging funding gap

“Endiya has a proven track record of identifying top entrepreneurial talent and helping founders scale the business — from idea and market validation, team building, business model refinement, customer, and partner acquisition to follow-on funding. We are excited about this partnership and look forward to sharing our resources, particularly supporting Endiya’s portfolio companies in their market development and future financing efforts in Japan through the presence of our investor base. We believe the partnership between India and Japan is of strategic national importance because it’s a perfect blend of Indian enterprise, its frugal innovation, and software skills with Japanese capital and their hardware prowess. We believe access to “friendly” Japanese capital is paramount to long-term growth of Indian start-ups,” said Sachin Bid, Fund Manager, Nippon India Alternate Investments.

“We built a strong connection with the NIDIA team even before they invested. We truly appreciate their confidence and support during such surreal times. Apart from business & technology partnership, strategic investment, and exit opportunities, Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) offers an attractive liquidity option to growing product startups,” said Sateesh Andra, Partner at Endiya Partners.

Endiya’s investment strategy addresses a funding gap in the venture capital spectrum in India between Angel and Series A investments, enabling entrepreneurs to find a value-accretive partner to further the development of their vision to build a sustainable business model. “While industry averages state that 30 per cent of seed deals go on to raise follow-on capital, 75 per cent of Endiya’s Portfolio has raised follow-on rounds. This affirms the team’s ability to successfully identify and co-create globally-scalable, early-stage start-ups”, adds Sateesh.

Endiya Fund II most recently received a commitment of ₹75 crore ($10 million approximately) from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. IFC has also committed an additional $10 million for direct co-investments alongside Endiya Fund II.

Nippon India Digital Innovation AIF (NIDIA) is managed by Nippon Life India AIF Management Limited (Nippon AIF), a 100 per cent subsidiary of NAM India. Nippon Life Insurance (NLI) of Japan owns 75 per cent of NAM India. NIDIA is a Fund of Funds (FoF) investing in India-centric early-stage venture capital funds.

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