Venture capital firm Iron Pillar partners with Nitya Capital, raises funds

Houston, Texas headquartered real estate firm Nitya Capital has signed a partnership deal and infused an undisclosed amount in Iron Pillar Holdings, which runs an eponymous venture capital fund that invests in mid-stage technology firms in India.

Anand Prasanna, Mohanjit Jolly and Ashok Ananthakrishnan, the founding partners of Nitya Capital, also infused funds into the Mauritius registered holding company, according to a statement. 

Founded in 2013 by Swapnil Agarwal, Nitya Capital has assets worth $2 billion under management.

The partnership will expand Iron Pillar’s network of investors, advisors and thought leaders, the statement said. 

With its $90 million first fund, Iron Pillar has backed companies such as competitive exam preparation platform Testbook, and online retailer for fish and meat FreshToHome. In May, it announced the final close of its $45 million top-up fund, which it will use to support high growth portfolio companies during the ongoing Covid-19 related slowdown, according to media reports.

“After getting the opportunity to back some great companies in our first fund, we were looking for a like-minded long-term partner who believed in India and the technological prowess of Indian entrepreneurs,” founder Prasanna, also the managing partner at Iron Pillar, said. 

“As a long-term partner, Nitya Capital brings a combination of the strong belief in Indian entrepreneurial opportunity, deep network of global investors to back them, and strong balance sheet for Iron Pillar,” he added.

In April, New York headquartered venture capital firm Lightspeed Venture Partners also announced the close of its $1.5 billion Lightspeed Opportunity Fund, which it expects to invest in breakout portfolio companies across geographies. 

As valuations dip and slowdown impacts businesses, India focused fund Orios Venture Partners has announced raising Orios Select Fund I to invest in post-Series B rounds in portfolio companies.